


ʻO ka Honua Kū'ē (Thunderstorms Melt the Frost)

by ivycross



Category: Hawaii Five-0 (2010)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Fae, Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Alternate Universe - Urban Fantasy, Anal Sex, Big Bang Challenge, Blood and Violence, Bottom Danny "Danno" Williams, Case Fic, Fae & Fairies, First Time, M/M, Magic, Romance, Top Steve McGarrett
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-05-15
Updated: 2019-05-15
Packaged: 2020-03-05 11:22:05
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 39,012
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18827680
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ivycross/pseuds/ivycross
Summary: When a dangerous weapon of the Fae is stolen, Steve McGarrett, the Knight of the Winter Court, is tasked with finding it before it falls into the wrong hands. He has no leads, no witnesses and to make matters worse, he has to work with a member of the Summer Court to solve the case. Steve isn’t comfortable with his new partner. The man seems to have no place in Fairy and is too talkative for Steve’s liking, but there is something about the guy that holds Steve’s attention. He can only hope that they can work together to find what they are looking for in spite of the rolling thunder overhead.





	ʻO ka Honua Kū'ē (Thunderstorms Melt the Frost)

**Author's Note:**

> Written for the 2019 [Hawaii Five-0 Big Bang](https://h50bigbang.tumblr.com). Thanks to the mod for hosting.  
> Beta Read by [partialfortune](https://partialfortune.tumblr.com) and My IRL friend Amy. They did a fantastic job and I can't thank them enough. With that being said I don't know when to stop working on a story so all mistakes are mine.  
> [Art by Arandin](https://neko-suke.tumblr.com/post/184890851720/heres-my-art-for-the-wonderful-story-%CA%BBo-ka-honua). She did amazing work and you all should be sure to tell her how awesome her art is.

It’s a tiny nondescript house in an unassuming neighborhood. As innocent as any place could be. That was the worst part about it all. No one knew what was inside and had no reason to question the inhabitants. Steve knew though and could easily see through the shoddy glamour around the building.

He stood across the street from the house, glaring toward an open window. There was no movement inside, but someone was at home. Steve would bet on that. Spriggans didn’t venture out in the day.

The real question was, had the creatures seen him? He hoped not, as it would give him the element of surprise; but even if they had, he still had a trick or two up his sleeves. Looking down at the array of items attached to his TAC vest, Steve reached out and plucked a small black canister from where it was hanging.

It could be mistaken for tear gas or even a flash grenade, but those wouldn’t do much against one of these little bastards. This was a special-order. It worked like tear gas but spit ground iron and yew ash into the air. If not expecting it, it could seriously mess up a Fae’s day.

Gripping the canister tight in one hand, Steve reached in through the open window of his truck taking out a gas mask. He didn’t put it on right away but carried it with him as he approached the house. As he passed through the glamour’s veil, a cold wind hit him and he could smell of snow. The spriggans were trying to make this little piece of Hawaii more like home. He envied them for being able to construct such a good enchantment. As much as he hated the Winter Court he always welcomed its chill against his skin, and the closest he could get here was running his air conditioning on full blast.

He looked around again now he was behind the veil and noticed how much worse the house looked. Fae only cared about what was theirs, so that any place they turned up that wasn’t in Fairy suffered for their presence. The grass was dead, the exterior of the house was crumbling. It looked like a dump, and Steve winced. He knew the inside would be so much worse. He just hoped the kids the spriggans had stolen were alright

Crouching low, he moved quickly under the open window he spotted before. No sound came from inside, so he still had the upper hand. He unrolled the tape that held the metal pin in place to the canister. He gave the pin a hard pull and chucked the canister into the open window and waited. It didn’t take long before he heard the hiss of gas leaking out and with it the sound of frantic coughing. Smirking, he slipped on the gas mask and pulled himself through the window.

The house was dark, and the mask restricted his vision, but Steve could still see enough to catch the first of the spriggans that charged at him. It came from his left, and despite the effect, the iron and yew ash gas was having on it, the spriggan was still moving fast. It tackled him, attempting to knock Steve down to the filthy floor. It was a good effort, but it wasn’t enough as Steve pulled his SIG from his belt. He fired off one round and plugged the creature right in the chest. The wound gaped open and expanded outward. The creature seemed confused. Steve couldn’t blame it. Normal bullets should have only slowed it down, but he had taken the time to load his gun with specially made rounds made of iron and blessed by a priest. They were a pain to use as he had to wear thick gloves that made the act of loading his clip a challenge, but he couldn’t deny their effectiveness with dealing with Fairy creatures.

The spriggan fell to the floor, and Steve quickly checked to make sure it was dead before he moved on. He moved through the house; the iron tainted air making his skin itch,  his lip curling in disgust at the state of things. The inside was definitely far worse than the outside of the house.

Even if he wasn’t there on a mission to rescue missing children, Steve felt he was doing good work taking out these creatures. It was rare anyone had a use for spriggans outside the forests. In the more urban areas, they just became dangerously unstable and left everything in ruins. Not worth the magic in their blood as far as it concerned him.

After clearing the rest of the house, Steve found a locked door. Not waiting to see if anyone answered the sound of him rattling the handle, he stepped back and kicked the door in. Waiting for it to spring open and hoping that nothing jumped out at him, Steve raised his gun to eye level and ventured down a set of stairs.

The gas hadn’t made it down here, as the air was clear. That was a problem, as this was where the rest of the spriggans were hiding. There were three more of them, and they all rushed him at once, their thin willowy arms looking like tree bark reached out for him. He winged one before the other two latched on to him. One of the two landed on his back as the other went for his gun.

He closed his eyes and focused, pulling the full force of his power. It wasn’t often he called on the full force of Winter when doing his job. It was too easy. The abilities it gave him, the speed, the strength, the ability to call magic right to his fingertips. It made everything so simple, yet it cost him a lot in terms of keeping his mortality intact.

The air in the room dropped in temperature as frost formed on the walls and the floor under his boots. The spriggans were oblivious, but not for long, as Steve reached out his free hand to the one on his back as it tore at his head and neck. His fingers clamped down on the creature and Steve exhaled slowly.

Frost crawled up his arm as he pulled the poor creature’s life from its body into his hand. It was like fire as it traveled down his arm into his shoulder, filling his chest. It was a burst of adrenaline, and he grinned wildly,  roaring behind his mask. He pulled the now drained spriggan off his back before flicking his wrist and tossing the other aside.

It landed a few feet from him, shaking and chattering in its garbled tongue. Steve could make out each word. It was calling him by his full title, begging for mercy

“Please, Sir Steven, good gracious knight of Queen Mab. Show mercy. We are just simple creatures. Surely you wouldn’t use your powers against something so much weaker than yourself.”

It wanted mercy. Another time and another place, Steve might have granted it. If it let the children go and promised to return to the forest of Fairy, he would have shown mercy. Only he had been the Winter Knight for too long. Winter didn’t show mercy. It wanted Justice, tainted with a hint of cruelty and the power of the mantle he carried had corrupted him slightly, sucking away at his humanity piece by piece. He could still feel for his fellow man and certain beings of Fairy, but it was impossible for him to feel anything but disgust for these creatures.

As fast as lighting, his hand flicked out and thin black thorny vines erupted from his fingertips. They shot out, grabbing the spriggan’s body lifting it up off the floor. The vines coiled around it like constrictor squeezing it before the thorns grew piercing its skin. They dug deep into its flesh, coating the spriggan’s skin with frost where the thorns bit into it. The vines moved under the spriggans’ skin like worms crawling along, going deeper and deeper. More and more the vines forced their way under the spriggan’s flesh until Steve pushed out with his might and the creature burst. The vines drank in the spilled blood before shrinking and retracting back into Steve’s hand.

Flexing his fingers Steve looked around. The spriggan he shot was struggling to move away, using one arm to pull its degrading body along the floor. Steve walked up to it, looking down at it dispassionately like he was watching a bug that had its legs pulled off. He thought to reach down and drain it of its life as he had done to the other, but he could tell there wouldn’t be much to take. Not worth it, even for the short burst of power he would gain from doing so. It keened softly in pain and the sound grated his ears, so he made it quick.

Aiming his gun, he shot it in the back of the head. It flopped down, its head splatting on the floor and his boots. Steve let out a disgusted grunt but thought no more of it as he moved away from the body as it turned to goo.

A quick look around the room told Steve that there were no more spriggans around. That disappointed him, as he had tasted blood. His mantle wakened wanted more, needed it to keep it going. The room was growing colder by the second; the light frosting on the walls turning into sheets of ice. Steve felt more alive than he had in months. Surely, later that night he would lie awake disgusted with himself but right then he didn’t care. There were more lives to take, more bodies to destroy.

On the edge of hearing, Steve picked up on a soft sound. A whimpering. Driven by the prospect of causing more carnage, he followed the sound, readying his hand to grab at any living thing in his path. He came across another door made of thick wood. Breaking it down was easy, only needing to slam his foot against it once before entering the room and scanning.

There were five children in total and they ranged in age between four and seven. They huddled together, shivering in the sudden cold, their dirty little faces streaked with tears, looking on at him with absolute terror.

That was all it took for Steve to come back to himself. A harsh jolt hit him as he pushed back his mantle, shying away from the powers he had just pulled forth. This was why he was here, these kids. To save them from whatever fate the spriggans had in store for them.

Pulling off the gas mask, he crouched down low, keeping his distance from the children, and gestured for them to come out of the room.

“Hey, it’s okay. I’m a cop. I’m going to get you out of here.” He kept his voice as low and soothing as he could, but even to his own ear, the harsh edge of Winter stuck fast, making him sound raspy. The children didn’t move, not at first, but Steve continued, slowly backing away to give them room, nodding and smiling encouragingly as slowly the children decided that they were safe.

One by one they exited, the older ones helping the youngest. Steve didn’t dare get too close or lay a finger on them. One touch could easily suck the life out of their bodies, and Steve couldn’t be too careful. Not when the might of Winter still coursed through him so strongly.

He moved around them gingerly, trying to shield their eyes from the destruction he caused. Nightmares would haunt these kids for the rest of their lives, and he didn’t want to add to that if he could help it at all.

Outside, a crowd had gathered around. The spriggans glamour was gone now. As a result, people could now see what the little house really looked like and it confused them. The confusion only grew as the children followed out behind Steve. The people of the neighborhood closed in around them and Steve held up a hand commanding everyone to take a step back.

One woman remained where she stood, looking at the herd of children then back to Steve in a way that made Steve’s skin crawl. “What is going on here?”

“Ma’am, please. It’s alright. I’m Five-O.” Steve pulled his badge from his belt and held it up for everyone to see. He twisted it in his hand, letting the light glint off the metal. It was a nasty trick, but highly effective as he pushed a little of his power into the gesture. The badge was a cover, an illusion that he created. Not that Five-O was a lie, not at all. But the badge disguised an item of real power, his sword. Mab gave it to him when he accepted the role of the Winter Knight and it held a power of its own, to hold people in a trance. Steve didn’t enjoy using it, but he had to admit it came in handy in times like this.

Already the people around Steve settled down, taken in by the sword’s hold on them. Even the woman, who remained where she stood, nodded at his words and moved to join the others in the crowd. It affected the children too, their little eyes glazed over in awe. It made Steve sick to his stomach but reminded himself that it was a necessary evil.

Keeping the badge raised and in everyone’s line of sight, Steve pulled out his phone and dialed a number.

“Hey, Duke. Yeah. I found those missing kids. I need you to send units to the address I give you.” He rattled off the address and dodged the one or two questions Duke threw at him over the phone. Now all he would need to do is keep everyone calm until HPD arrived.

He lowered his badge but kept it out, letting the effect of it slowly wear off. The people were still confused but not as much as before, though the children just were relieved to be free of their prison inside the house. One little girl asked Steve if she could go home.

“Yeah, you can. That’s why I’m here. To make sure you can go home and be safe.”

That seemed to satisfy her, as she smiled faintly and returned to stand with the other kids while everyone waited. Steve looked over at the group of children and sighed. He often regretted the decision he made all those years ago, but today would not be one of those days.

~*~

After HPD collected the children, Steve filled in as many details to Duke as he felt comfortable giving and he returned to Five-0 headquarters. He still had his mortal job to think about, leading a task force for the State of Hawaii to prevent and solve violent crimes. He knew next to nothing about law enforcement, but the Governor gave him immunity and means to do whatever he saw fit to do his job. Besides, it seemed like the best use of his skills as a Navy SEAL. Stars above knew, he paid dearly to get them. He would use them for some good.

Even before he entered the bullpen, he knew he wasn’t alone. Frost hung in the air and there was a sense of otherworldliness that didn’t belong. Taking a deep breath, he marched into his office not sure who he expected to see. No one was there. He waited, looking around for the faintest trace of glamour to see where they were hiding. The telltale haze by his desk tipped him off, and he reached out grabbing the person.

“Alright, what are you doing here?” He asked before seeing who it was. “Jenna?” In his hands was a small brown-haired woman of petite build. She tried to smile as he let go of her, taking a step back.

“Hey, Steve.”

Steve didn’t return her smile. He glared back at her, nostrils flared. “You got two seconds to tell me why you’re here, or─” He reached down to his belt, his hand hovering over his badge.

Jenna hunched her shoulders and waved her hands. “Wait. Don’t, don’t do that. Okay.” She tried to smile again. “I didn’t want to come, but…”

“But?” Steve said. His hand still hovered over his badge, ready to shed its glamour and use it if needed.

“But...You still can’t be mad at me, can you?”

“I can’t?” Steve huffed out a laugh, dry and mirthless. “I think I can, since last time I saw you, you almost got me killed. An impressive feat, I might add.”

Jenna lowered her head, crossing her arms over her chest. “I… It wasn’t my idea,” she said. “I was under orders, you know that. Besides, I’m already being punished. Mab banned me from Court. I have to live in The Solitary now, so there‘s no need to threaten me.”

“Surprisingly enough, I don’t care. You betrayed my trust, and I told you I never wanted to see you again.”

“Yeah well, you don’t get a say in the matter,” Jenna said. She lifted her head up and looked Steve in the eyes. “Mab tapped me to deliver a message. She said she’s putting you on a quest.”

Steve lowered his hand and narrowed his eyes. “What quest?” The hairs on the back of his neck rose. It was never good when Mab called on him for a quest. It usually involved him going somewhere, either in Fairy or the Mortal realm, and doing her dirty work. When he took on the mantle of the Knight of the Winter Court, no one had told him it would mean being the Winter Queen’s Blackhand.

Jenna licked her lips before answering. “You have to locate The Areadbhair.” She paused before adding, “Someone has stolen it.”

~*~

For the moment, Steve’s hostility toward Jenna vanished. He was too shocked to hold any other emotion. His mouth hung open as he worked through what she had told him. “The Spear of Lugh is gone?” he asked taking a step back.

“Yeah.”

“Stolen?”

Jenna nodded her head. Steve couldn’t believe it. The Areadbhair was one of the oldest and more dangerous weapons in all of Fairy. Probably in all the realms. It was so dangerous that neither Fairy Court wanted it. That meant making sure either court didn’t try to get its hands on it.

Steve moved behind his desk and sat down. This was big.

“How?” He asked. It wasn’t like the spear was just anywhere. King Oberon himself had it placed inside a cave in the oldest darkest parts of Fairy, under heavy guard made up of people from both Summer and Winter. That was eons ago, and no one had seen it since.

Jenna shrugged. “No one knows. One of the reported it missing.”

“And they saw nothing, heard nothing?”

“Apparently not. Or at least they never said.”

Steve sighed. “Lemme guess. They’re now all dead.”

Jenna nodded.

“That’s perfect. So, we have a missing weapon and no witnesses, because they are all dead. I assume executed?”

Jenna nodded again.

Steve shut his eyes. He was getting a headache. That was a problem with the Fae. When provoked, they lashed out in the worst ways and then expected someone else to clean up the mess. His mind flashed back to earlier with the spriggans. He was no better, but he tried. He had to, or else he would lose what little of his mortal side he had left.

“So, what do we know?” He asked looking once more at Jenna.

“There’s a reason to believe that it’s somewhere here in the Mortal realm,” Jenna said. She gave a tiny smile. “So that’s good, right? You won’t have to go to Fairy and look for it.”

That wasn’t much of a comfort. The Mortal realm was no place for a Fairy weapon of any kind, let alone one like the Spear. If some unknowing human got their hands on it, it could cause so much devastation. Or worse if someone who knew exactly what it was, it could be game over.

He leaned forward, elbows resting on his desk, massaging his temples. This would be impossible, but what choice did he have? He couldn’t refuse an order from his queen and he couldn’t just allow the Spear out in the world. He had a duty. He decided that he would use his powers to protect, to do good. Finding the Spear would protect both the Mortal realm and Fairy.

“Alright. I’ll get on that right away. Go back to Mab and let her know that I won’t rest until it’s found.”

Jenna gave a weak smile that faded quickly. “There’s one more thing,” she said.

“What’s that?” Steve groaned. There was always a catch. Nothing was ever straightforward with Fae even in the most pressing of circumstances.

“You won’t be working on this alone.”

Steve’s fingers stopped moving, and he lowered his hands resting them on the smooth surface of his desk. “Mab’s sending someone else in on this?”

That didn’t sound right. As her champion, Mab expected Steve to handle all courtly duties on his own. That was fine by him. There were things he did that even Fae considered abhorrent. It was best he worked alone.

“Who is she sending? It’s not you, is it?” he asked.

Jenna laughed, high pitched and hysterical. “Oh no. No, no. Not me. I’m not of the Court anymore, so I’m not allowed to interfere in court business.”

“So, who?” Steve pressed.

Jenna twisted her fingers, hesitant to speak.

Steve wasn’t having it. He stood, slamming his hand down on his desk as he pushed his will out. The temperature in the room dropped dramatically, and the lights dimmed.

“Who?” He roared.

Jenna jumped and screamed. “It’s a member of Summer.”

Steve pulled his will back and blinked. “Someone from Summer?”

“Yeah,” Jenna said, her body shaking. “When word got out that the Spear was gone and on the Mortal Realm, Mab said that she would send you, but Titania threw a fit and demanded that she send someone too. Since both queens wanted to send someone to investigate, Oberon decreed that you and Titania’s champion would work together to keep things even.”

More like to make sure the other side didn’t take the Spear for themselves, Steve thought.

“So Titania is sending her Knight?”

“Titania didn’t say. Just that it would be a member of her choosing and they would meet you before sunset this day.”

That made no sense. It had to be the Knight. That’s what the Knights were for. Unless Summer didn’t have a Knight. Steve hadn’t kept up with the goings-on in the Courts, but there had been something going on within Summer to suggest there had been an upset. Had they lost their Knight? And if so, why hadn’t they replaced them yet?

Once more the hairs on the back Steve’s neck stood up. Something else was going on here and it reeked of Fairy politics. He did not want to be dropped into a mess like that. But once again, what choice did he have?

“Is there anything else I need to know?” He asked.

Jenna shook her head. “Not right now. If anything comes up though, I’ll let you know.”

Steve nodded and waved Jenna off. He didn’t see her go, but her presence was noticeably absent. He sat back down at his desk and sighed. He had two tasks in front of him now; find the Spear and avoid whatever mess the Summer court was into. He would need to tell Chin and Kono that he wouldn’t be available, hoping his co-workers would forgive him, and he would need a drink just to wind down enough to even start.

~*~

For the better part of the afternoon, Steve remained in his office. He attempted to fill out paperwork and budget request forms, but his heart wasn’t in it. The upcoming task of finding the Spear loomed over him, making him restless. His legs bounced under his desk as he re-read sentences, not fully comprehending them. It was a blessing when Chin and Kono returned from their casework. Steve heard the telltale sounds of them entering the bullpen and rushed out of his office.

Steve had been working with them for months. In fact, when offered the chance to start this task force, Chin was the first person he went to see. An overly zealous I.A. investigation ran him out of the police force, but Steve knew he was a good cop, having known the man worked with his father for years. He recruited Chin’s cousin, Kono, once Steve learned that behind her carefree attitude and bright smile hid the heart of a just warrior.

With them both being mortal, Steve had tried to hide his nature, but after an unfortunate incident involving a rather cruel human trafficker, the truth came flying out. They took it well, or as well as anyone could. Mostly they wanted to ask questions. Like why? Why do this if he wasn’t born into the Courts? Why accept something so dangerous and deadly? He didn’t know how to explain it to them, but he tried his best. Mostly, they understood. Even the most humble of people could see the appeal of power.

Even with them knowing what he was and how he operated, Steve did his best to not involve them in Fairy business. Mortals never fully understood such things and taking these two people he would give his life for and putting them in danger for his bad decisions never set well with him.

Chin and Kono were standing by the smart-table already pulling something up when Steve approached. Their bright smiles weighted on Steve as he thought how best to tell them he would soon be leaving to perform his other duties. It didn’t come up often, but when he had to fly off and work for the Court, it never set well with his friends.

“Hey, Steve,” Chin greeted looking up from the table.

Kono chimed in with her own cheery hello. “You’ll be happy to hear that we got a lead on that arms dealer we’ve been tracking.”

“That’s great,” Steve said, a brittle smile on his face. He didn’t ask for more information. There was no point depending on how long he would be away. The two of them could have everything wrapped up before he even got a solid lead of his own.

His lack of questions didn’t escape Chin or Kono. Their dual expressions of pursed lips and raised eyebrows told Steve he could not keep quiet for long. He braced himself for the questions he knew were coming.

“So, what’s going on with you?” Chin asked, not bothering to waste time.

Steve shifted his weight leaning one hip against the smart-table. No time to come up with anything but the truth. “Uh, I’m not gonna be able to help you guys finish this case.” He ran his fingers through his hair, not looking at them. “I was tapped, and I don’t know how long it will take.”

The silence that came over the three of them was heavy. Steve tried to gauge Chin and Kono’s reactions. They weren’t looking at him but at each other, concern on their faces.

“I take it this is Fairy business?” Chin asked.

“Yeah. I have to recover an item, and I don’t have a lot of information to go on.”

“What’s the item?” Kono asked, already swiping the screen of the smart table and bringing up a fresh window. “Maybe we can help?”

“No, no. I don’t want to involve you in this.”

“That’s what you always say, and frankly it’s a little insulting,” Chin said.

“I know it is,” Steve said. “I get it. I would like to get more help from you, but I don’t want you to get caught up in Fairy business. It’s dangerous if you don’t know what to expect.”

“Boss, we want to help,” Kono said. “We don’t like you doing stuff alone. You’re part of our ‘Ohana and that means we stick together and help each other out.”

Chin nodded along with Kono’s words, looking deep into Steve’s eyes. It touched Steve. It always did. The way Chin and Kono treated him, pulled him into their fold, making sure he knew he wasn’t alone. It felt like family, and Steve had experienced nothing like that since he was fifteen.

He smiled. “I know, and I…” His voice trailed off, not sure how to express his emotions. “I feel that way too, but it’s because I see you the same way. That said, I don’t want you in this. I couldn’t do that to family.”

Chin and Kono frowned at him, disappointed. It stuck with Steve. He didn’t handle disappointment well and coming from his friends; it hit him hard. He wanted to relent but knew better. It was for their benefit. He could bear some disappointment if it meant keeping people he cared about safe.

“Besides,” Steve said, “I won’t be alone. I’ll be working with someone on this.”

“Who?” Kono asked.

“Someone from Fairy, specifically from the Summer Court.”

“The Summer Court?” Chin narrowed his eyes, questioning Steve’s words. “I thought the two courts didn’t do stuff like that.”

“Yeah. The Courts are kept separate and only come together during the Solstices and Equinoxes under the order of Oberon himself,” Kono added.

Now it was Steve’s turn to frown. “How did you know that?”

The two smiled back at him, overly pleased with themselves.

“Steve, did you think we wouldn’t do our research?” Chin said.

“Yeah. Come on now. From the moment you told us you were the Knight of one of the Fairy Courts, we’ve been looking into it,” Kono said. “You know there is a lot of weird stuff out there about Fairy, but fortunately we found a professor of European Folklore and Mythology here on the island. Richard Mercado. The guy’s been teaching this stuff for years. We’ve read his books and sat in on a few of his lectures.”

It shouldn’t have surprised Steve. Chin and Kono were good cops, and that meant being nosy. If they couldn’t get information from the source, they would dig around elsewhere. He could be upset with them, but he didn’t have it in him. At least they were getting knowledge about the Fae. Not that they would ever have to use it, at least not if he had anything to do with it.

“I’m touched and glad you found someone to learn this stuff from,” Steve said, more than aware that it should have been him to tell them these things. “But don’t get too confident at what you’re learning. This guy’s still human and unless he’s lived in Fairy, he will not know it all.”

Not that a mortal couldn’t live in Fairy, but usually when they did, they never came back sane. Not sane enough to teach as a college professor.

“As for me working with someone from Summer,” he continued, “It is weird, but necessary because of what we will be doing.”

“Which is?” Chin prompted. His dark eyes locked on to Steve. He would not let this go. They couldn’t help, but they would be told what was going on.

“I have to find a weapon, The Areadbhair, otherwise known as the Spear of Lugh. It’s very dangerous, and it’s missing. The Courts don’t trust each other enough to just have one side looking for it, so when Mab tapped me, Titania said she was sending one of her own to work with me.”

“Can you trust them?” Kono asked.

Steve looked from one friend to the other. His ‘ohana, his safety net. The people who never let him down and always had his back. He wondered how best to answer this question but decided that the truth would be best. He swallowed hard and sighed.

“I don’t know.”

~*~

It was just about sunset when Steve walked into the bar. He had stuck around the office after talking to Chin and Kono to clear out some paperwork and reassure his friends he would be fine, peppering in a few promises that he would check in with them in the next few days to let them know how things were going. They weren’t keen on letting him go off alone, but Steve put his foot down about them being involved. He didn’t know who from the Summer Court was coming to investigate this with him and that could make things worse for everyone.

As it stood, he was pissed off that no one had shown up to meet with him. He had even stopped by his house to make sure that whoever was coming didn’t look for him there. It wasn’t like a Fae to be late or rude, but they liked to play tricks. It always tested Steve’s limited patience at the best of times, and right now he’d already had enough of Fairy nonsense.

He decided he would not wait around any longer. First thing in the morning, he would go out and talk to some local Fae to see what they knew. Fae were notorious gossips, and someone would surely know something and be willing to share with him for the right price. For now, though, Steve wanted a drink or two.

The bar was old, started back in the fifties as a tourist trap, but over the years more and more locals had taken it over. Nowadays, it was a well-guarded secret on the island. Tacky decorations still hung on its walls, more of an inside joke than an insult, and you could get a beer cheap. Steve found it by accident one night and made nice with the regulars until they welcomed him.

As he walked in, he attempted to smile and nod at the usual customers, ones who knew him by his face alone, and made his way over to the bar. Taking a seat, he let the bartender know he wanted a beer. Without a word, the guy set a Longboard down in front of him. Steve drank half of it immediately. Just the place to unwind before losing himself on this case.

“What are you? Blind? Someone get that ref outta here!”

Or it should have been.

Steve looked down the bar to see who was making the commotion. Sitting at the very edge was an obvious mainlander if Steve were to judge from the look of the guy’s blue button up and black tie. The other was watching a football game on the TV hanging on the wall, making wild hand gestures at the screen every time something happened. With each movement the bar’s low light glinted off the man’s blond hair and fair skin. Steve’s eyes went to the screen and winced at the score. He didn’t know who the guy was rooting for, but if it was the Jets, he wasn’t having a good day.

“Can you believe this? Can you fucking believe this?” The guy said taking a drink of his beer. “They pay these schmucks top dollar, and they can’t even catch a ball. Unbelievable.”

Steve blew out a breath, lamenting the loss of his quiet drink. It was tempting to tell the guy to shut up, but no one else in the bar seemed to mind him. There were even a few mumbled agreements. Maybe he could just zone him out after he had few drinks?

“For the love of god, just run. Run. You’ve got the ball. Go!”

Or maybe Steve would have to drown the guy in the toilet. He picked up his second beer and moved down the bar taking the seat next to the guy.

“Would you mind keeping it down?” He asked, leaning into the guy’s personal space. The guy faced him, and for a second Steve was taken back by the other’s eyes. They were so blue. Like the color of the sky and he forgot himself for just a moment.

“I’m sorry, what?”

Steve blinked and tried to pull himself together. It was a tough job. This close, with the man looking right at him, Steve felt the pull of attraction bubbling up inside him. Even his mantle seemed to notice as it shifted around inside him.

“Can you keep it down,” he repeated, though not with the same gruffness as before. The guy was incredibly good-looking. Steve couldn’t decide what he liked more; the strong jaw covered with just enough stubble to be enticing, or the broad shoulders that Steve could easily see himself sinking his teeth into.

“I am being loud?” The guy looked surprised like he did not understand. There was a huff as a slow sheepish smile crossed his lips. “Sorry. It’s just, I get into watching the game, you know how it is─”

“Yeah,” Steve said easily, a warm smile on his lips.

“And you see your team fucking up so badly. I mean, c’mon, look at that score. That’s pathetic.” As the guy continued, his voice rose.

Steve wondered if he was one of those naturally loud people. A little annoying, but as Steve continued to look him over, it made his mind wander closer and closer to the gutter. A quick scan told Steve the guy seemed to be alone and there was no ring on his finger. He wondered which way the guy leaned sexually. Sure, having a couple of beers would take the edge of things, but now Steve was thinking a night with a loud little mainlander would be even better for his nerves.

“Yeah, it’s sad,” Steve said softening his voice. “But your yelling will not help them score enough goals to even come close to winning.”

“Yeah,” The guy slumped in his chair a little, before perking up again. “But that’s not why you watch, you know? You watch to, ah, get out of yourself for a while. Get the blood pumping, clear your head. It’s cathartic to yell and cheer.”

As he spoke, he gestured with his hands more, and Steve watched them move. They were nice hands. His mind was fully in the gutter now thinking how those hands would feel on him.

He smiled. “Okay. I can see that, yeah. But there are better ways to get the blood pumping, you know?”

Those blue eyes turned darker they focused on Steve. “Is that so?”

“Yeah.” Steve leaned in a little closer. “There’s running, swimming...”

The guy made a disinterested face.

Steve laughed. “Or you know, other things…” He brought his beer up to his lip, making sure he held eye contact. The blond seemed to pause for a second, and Steve wondered how this would go. Would he be interested, blow him off, or would Steve have to duck an oncoming fist?

It was a good sign that the guy grinned, his eyes lighting up. “Well, there are other things,” he said, turning his body in toward Steve. He leaned in and Steve knew he had him as the other’s hand reached out touching his knee.

Then the guy stopped and drew back his hand. He laughed, shaking his head.

Steve blinked, wondering what happened. Had the guy been messing with him? Not the first time this happened, but it riled Steve up. He glowered, his shoulders squaring up as the guy continued to laugh.

“What’s so funny?”

“Oh man,” the guy said. “I… You… You had me.” He repositioned himself in his chair, a more casual pose while bringing his beer to his lips. “I thought so when you walked in, but I couldn’t be sure. Your glamour is good. Better than I thought, honest. I wanted to see what you would do, and you hit on me. Oh, man…”

Steve’s stomach dropped as he stared, his mouth hanging open. He could usually spot a member of Fae from fifty yards, so he looked over the guy again for any signs he missed. There was nothing he could pinpoint. So, what was happening?

“Who are you?”

The guy smiled and sighed. “My name is Danny Williams, and I’ve been tasked with working with you, good Sir Knight.”

“You’re from Summer?” Steve asked, not sure if he should buy it. The guy gave off nothing, not one hint he was Fae. Was he Fae? Was this some strange joke that Summer was playing on him?

“I am,” Danny said, and for a moment his smile slipped. He licked his lips and shut his eyes. Then Steve could see it. It was just a glimmer, but there was an aura around the guy like sunlight. He caught a faint whiff of apples and flowers, then it was all gone.

Steve sat back in his chair, one hand gripped around his beer, dumbfounded. The other looked embarrassed, averting his eyes, his body turned back away from Steve as he fiddled with his drink.

Steve had wanted a relaxing drink and maybe a warm body to curl into. What he got was the embarrassment of unknowingly flirting with someone from the Summer Court and blue balls. Sucking on his lips in irritation, he fumed for a few seconds before finishing his beer.

“Come on,” he said, pulling out his wallet and throwing some bills on the bar.

“Uh? Where are you going?”

“We are going to talk about our investigation and see what we know. Then I’m going to get some sleep.” Steve stood and started toward the exit.

From behind him, Steve heard Danny sigh, “And here I thought we were getting along.”

~*~

The next morning, Steve stood in his kitchen staring out the window, going over the events of last night. He held a mug full of coffee, but he had hardly touched it. His mind was too focused on his new partner, Danny Williams.

It turned out that Danny knew only what Steve did. He did, however, have the privilege of seeing the execution of some of the guards. Steve felt a little pity because of that. As Danny talked about it, a look of disgust came over his face. That at least told Steve something about the man. He wasn’t one who reveled in violence.

The thing was, that’s all Steve could figure out. Danny offered nothing about himself other than his name, and when pressed, he said Titania asked him specifically to look for the Spear. That meant that Danny had to be someone linked directly to the Summer Court, but what rank he held, Steve had no clue.

Already Steve had seen that Danny was good at hiding the fact he was Fae, as Steve was still kicking himself for not knowing. The fact he was so dodgy about answering any question about it made Steve suspicious. Fae loved to brag and would do so even about the tiniest little thing. Even petty courtiers loved to name drop and talk about how close they stood to a Queen’s throne. Danny didn’t, not one word.

Steve’s mind circled back to his thoughts after speaking with Jenna. There was some weird Fae shit going on here, and Danny was in the middle of it. Steve didn’t like it. He refused to get caught up in Summer’s bullshit. Sooner they found the Spear, the sooner he could be rid of Danny and everything the man might bring with him.

“Hello?”

Steve shut his eyes and growled under his breath. Speak of the devil. He turned around just as Danny was walking into his kitchen carrying a little white paper bag.

“Do people from Summer not know how to knock?” Steve asked.

Danny ignored him, hopping up on a nearby counter and digging into the paper bag. That was another thing too. Since Danny made Steve, he wasn’t as friendly toward him. That could have something to do with the fact that Steve made sure he let Danny know just what he thought of Summer and all its inhabitants. Still, it chaffed as Steve still found himself attracted to Danny, at least on a physical level. How Danny wore all his clothes as tight as he could without splitting seams didn’t help.

The shirt he had on today, a light green button down, clung to the man’s chest and shoulders in an obscene fashion. And he still wore the tie. Steve could not imagine wearing something like that in Hawai’i. It screamed haole. There was no way Steve could casually talk to the local Fae with this guy in tow.

“I knocked,” Danny said, taking a powdery confection out of the bag and biting into it. “It’s not my fault you didn’t hear me.” He talked with his mouth full, dropping powdered sugar all over his tie, which he clumsily brushed away.

It was enough to make Steve question himself for finding this man attractive. He reached over the counter, pulled out a napkin, and threw it at Danny. Danny caught it and wiped at the corners of his mouth.

“Thanks,” Danny said, using the napkin to brush away more of the powdered sugar from his tie. “I guess people in Winter never spill their food when eating?”

“What?”

“I’m just asking because you keep rolling your eyes at me and curling your lip,” Danny said, his eyes locking on to Steve. They seemed even bluer than the night before and they were so bright. They reminded Steve that he was an idiot because he was very much attracted to Danny.

“No one said that,” Steve said, setting down his mug. “Are you ready? Because we’ve got a lot to do today.” He stormed out of the kitchen, heading toward his front door, very aware that Danny was following right behind him.

“Look, I get it, you’re mad. I played a little prank on you last night, but I wasn’t trying to set you up or twist you,” Danny started in as they went outside. “Like I said, I thought it could be you when you walked in, but I wasn’t sure. I was just going to watch for a minute and then say something, okay?”

Steve pivoted round forcing Danny to stop short, nearly falling over.

“You were supposed to meet me before sunset yesterday. I waited all day for you to show up and you never did. I had to find you in a bar watching a football game.”

Steve was grasping at straws. Yes, it annoyed him that Danny didn’t find him first, but it wasn’t why he was lashing out. It was because he didn’t get what he wanted, and it was better to lash out than admit it.

It was a relief to see that his deflection was working as Danny looked momentarily abashed.

“Okay, yeah. I know. I know and I’m sorry. I was going to meet up with you, but… I’m sure when they told that you had to work with someone from the Summer Court you weren’t exactly thrilled, right?”

Steve had to give him that one as he placed his hand on his hips and looked at the ground.

“Yeah? Well, when I was told that I was working with someone from Winter, the Winter Knight no less, I wasn’t exactly jumping up and down with joy at the opportunity. So, I took a little detour.” Danny shoved his hands in his pockets, rocking on his heels. “I’m sorry. That was unprofessional of me.”

Steve looked up. “You’re worried about being professional? Is that why you’re wearing the tie?”

“Is that why… What? You don’t like my tie?” Danny looked down at the article in question. “What’s wrong with my tie?”

Steve snorted. “It makes you stick out like a sore thumb. C’mon.” He turned again and headed towards his truck, only to stop to see a white Camaro sitting next to it. “Is this yours?” he asked, eyeing the vehicle. It was low to the ground and so very sleek. Steve had driven a lot of vehicles in his day but nothing like this. His fingers itched to get around the steering wheel and see how it handled curves.

It was funny because he thought the same thing about Danny, but the less he focused on that the better.

“Yeah, that’s mine. At least while I’m here in the Mortal Realm. I have little use for it in Fairy.”

Steve banished all thoughts about Danny and nodded. “Yeah, I can see that. You know I was thinking we could take my truck but maybe we could take your car instead?”

“Yeah, sure,” Danny pulled the keys out of his pocket and headed toward the driver’s side door. Steve quickly jumped in, snatching the keys from Danny’s hands and rounded the vehicle opening the driver’s side door before Danny even knew what was happening.

“Hey. What do you think you’re doing?”

Steve did his best to look stunned, shrugging his shoulders. “Uh, I thought I would drive. I mean I know these streets better, and I’ve had comprehensive driving instructions.” He slipped inside the car, shutting the door and turned the ignition. The car roared to life, and Steve ran his hands over the wheel, giddy with excitement. He buckled his seat belt and waited for Danny to get in. When he didn’t, Steve rolled down the passenger window and leaned over the seats to look at him. “Are you waiting for an invitation? Get in.”

Danny glared at him, his nostrils flaring. “You son of a…” He trailed off, finally getting into the car. “You know, I really felt bad about last night. I really did.”

“Is that so?” Steve said, putting the car into gear and backing out of his driveway.

“Yeah, but you know what? Now, not so much. In fact, I’m glad I made a fool of you last night. You deserve it, you animal.”

Danny continued to glare, those blue eyes burning with indignation. It did nothing to dampen Steve’s feelings of attraction, and the way Danny was carrying on brought out a little spark of joy in Steve. He didn’t know who Danny Williams was or how he fit in all this, but Steve knew that Danny wasn’t like the other Fae. That thought alone allowed Steve to relax somewhat as they drove off in search of their first clue.

~*~

“What are we doing here?”

It’s the first thing Danny has said since they left the house. At first, Steve enjoyed the silence while he basked in the joy of driving the Camaro. However, after a while, it weighed on him. Little tendrils of guilt crept through his brain making him question his actions, which in turn only made him angry. He didn’t want to feel guilty. He had no reason to feel guilty. Or he kept telling himself.

They were now parked by the docks, watching the comings and goings of the people who worked there. Steve was pointedly not looking at Danny, but staring out the windshield of the car, hoping that he was right about his hunch. He was also noticing the longer they sat there the darker the sky was becoming. It looked like a storm was rolling in. There had been no mention in the morning weather report about a storm and Steve just hoped this had nothing to do with the missing Spear.

“Are you not speaking now, is that it?” Danny continued on.

Steve clenched his jaw. “No, I’m busy.”

“Busy? We’re just sitting here. If we’re on a stakeout, fine, but you should at least let me know what we’re looking for.”

“I thought it would be obvious, Danny. We’re looking for selkies.” It should have been obvious. Selkies kept to themselves, but they had a good habit of keeping their ears to the ground. They were always a good place to start when looking into Fairy business.

Danny clicked his tongue. “No, I didn’t think that would be obvious, Steven. See, there is this little thing called communication, and when you are working with someone, who can’t read minds, you tell them things so they are on the same page as you.”

Steve made a face while cutting his eyes at Danny. “You know, if you’re going to keep up with me, maybe you should think a little more about what we’re doing. We’re trying to find the Spear, and we have no information to go on. So, we need to talk to people and to do that it would make sense to find people to talk to.”

It was easier to say that than what Steve was really thinking, which boiled down to: I don’t want to talk to you. I’m mad at you. Because I hit on you and you made me feel foolish. Because I’m mad at myself for still finding you attractive despite you being from Summer. Because I acted like an ass and hijacked your car. Because I’m not used to working with other people when conducting my duties as a knight. Because I still don’t know who you are…

Danny’s gaze lingered on Steve, full of annoyance. Steve looked away, but that didn’t stop the feeling they were burning holes into him.

“You are ridiculous,” Danny said. He undid his seatbelt, throwing open his car door.

Steve sat there agape. “What are you doing?”

“I’m finding someone to talk to,” Danny said, getting out of the car. He slammed the door before Steve could say any more.

This was great. Now Steve had a new reason to be angry at Danny.

He had planned on singling someone out, getting them away from everyone else around the docks and apply pressure to get them to talk. He was sure Danny would blow this and send every Fae on the island underground.

He watched as Danny walked along, his stride fast yet full of confidence. It was the way he moved his shoulders, Steve figured. They worked in rhythm with his hips, so that Danny moved with a sense of purpose. Steve immediately berated himself for even noticing. Instead, he focused on the direction Danny was going.

Then he spotted what he had been looking for. The guy didn’t stand out, but to Steve, he screamed selkie. It was the eyes. They were a little too large and dark against his brown skin.

Stepping out of the car, Steve figured he could give Danny the benefit of the doubt. Or rub it in his face when the guy ran. Sure enough, when Danny approached him the guy stiffened up. Steve watched as Danny reached out his hand in a calming gesture, his mouth moving to speak, and the guy took off. With a snort and a shake of his head, Steve took off after him.

He ran past the other people, expertly dodging and weaving around them, moving as fast as he felt safe to do so. He couldn’t let loose and go full speed. Not around this many Mortals. There would be too many questions. But then he saw the guy grab something off one of the empty piers he passed, and he knew he had no choice.

Selkies always worried about their pelts and kept them hidden, but the more modern ones found ways around this. A spell here and there, and suddenly the only thing people saw was hoodies or leather jackets, not seal skins.

The guy was struggling to put his own on as he ran, and Steve pulled at his will, his speed increasing. The world moved past him like a blur as it seemed like everything around him just stopped.

The only thing that distracted him was Danny’s voice on the wind, calling for him to stop. That would not happen. Not even when he felt a surge of magic behind him, so strong it sent a shock wave through his body. He didn’t know what it was, but he would deal with it later, once he caught this guy.

He was right on him, and just as the guy was about to slip the hood of the jacket over his head, Steve lept, tackling the guy to the ground. There was a struggle, the selkie fighting to get free. Steve pinned him down until he stopped moving before standing up and hauling the guy to his feet.

“Hey, man. Let me go,” the selkie said, struggling against Steve’s grip on the back of his neck.

Steve spun him around to face him and watched as the color drained out of the guy's face. “I’ll let you go when it suits me.”

The guy shook in his grasp. “Oh shit. Look, I know I broke the rules, but I didn’t think it would be that big of a deal. Not enough to send the Winter Knight after me.”

Steve hauled him in closer. “What rules?” The guy was guilty of something, and the mantle surged under his skin demanding to punish the hapless selkie for whatever his crimes were.

“Steve, what is wrong with you?” Danny was suddenly standing next to Steve, his eye burning once more with anger. His aura was back, glowing bigger and brighter than before. It looked like a sunrise surrounding him. It was as breathtaking as it was worrisome. He also looked tired. “I have never in my life… You’re lucky that’s all I got to say.”

“What are you talking about?” Steve blinked, pulled out of his momentary stupor. The aura around Danny was impressive, powerful, and it made Steve’s stomach drop ever so slightly. Definitely a high-ranking Fae of the court, but Steve still couldn’t put his finger on what Danny was.

Danny threw up his hands. “What am I talking about, he says. I’m talking about me having to throw out the biggest veil I’ve ever had to make to block everyone on this godforsaken dock from seeing you do your best Quicksilver impression while chasing down this want-wit.”

Danny smacked the guy in Steve’s hands. “By the way, dummy, what were you thinking, huh? That you would just slip on your skin and dive back into the water? You didn’t think all these people wouldn’t see you? Or take a fucking picture? What’s the matter with you?”

Danny’s anger was impressive, and his aura grew as his voice rose. Steve hoped that Danny’s veil could block sound and sight. He looked over his shoulder to see what Danny was talking about. In his experience, veils were one solid block of magic over an area. This was something different.

It covered the eyes of every single person on the dock and nothing more. It was a marvel that took a lot of power to not only perform but to maintain. Steve gaped at Danny, who continued to look pissed off, his eyes locked on the perp.

“That’s one hell of a veil,” Steve said.

Danny snorted at the compliment, his expression not changing in the slightest.

The poor selkie, his already large baleful eyes locked onto Danny, was in awe. “How did you do that?” he said, pointing over Steve’s shoulder at the many confused dock workers. They had witnessed a chase go by, but now the participants were nowhere to be seen.

Danny snorted again and jerked back in frustration, waving a dismissive hand. “That doesn’t matter, okay? What matters is I would have talked to you civilly, but then you had to run and drag this Neanderthal into the mess. So I’m tempted to let him just do whatever he wants because you wasted my time and energy.”

That impressed Steve and made him more curious about Danny. It would have to wait though as the selkie yelped, his head shaking.

“No, no, no, don’t let him do that. I’ve heard stories, man. He’s fucked up.”

Danny smirked, his eyes cutting to Steve in amusement. It wasn’t amusing. Not for Steve. He wasn’t some monster. He did his job. Sure, he could be ruthless about it, like with the spriggans, but that was because they were stealing kids. They deserved nothing less than what they got. He gave the guy a not so gentle shake as a reminder that he still had a hold of him, and if he didn’t want all those terrible things to happen to him, he should learn to cooperate a little better.

“Listen,” Danny said, still smirking. “We just wanna talk to you about the Areadbhair.”

“The Spear?” The guy shook his head, jerking it from side to side. “I know nothing about that.”

“But you know it’s missing, right?” Steve prompted, giving the guy another hard shake. “You said you broke some rule. Maybe it was the one where no member of the realms, magical or otherwise, is allowed in the old forests without Oberon’s permission? Maybe you were there? Maybe you helped someone else in to get the Spear? Or maybe you just took it yourself?”

The mantle twisted inside Steve, its might coiling just under his skin. Inky blue-black vines rose and fell under his flesh, moving down his arms. It wanted justice. It wanted blood. Steve steeled himself against its pull. The temptation was there. Eviscerate this guy and move on to someone else, but he still held on to some part of him that was human. Even if this guy did it, he needed to hold off and let the courts decide his fate.

The guy’s eyes locked onto Steve’s arms, filling with tears as they watched the coiling vines just under Steve’s skin. That only enticed the mantle, and the vines pulled up out of Steve’s skin, making gross popping sounds. Steve couldn’t feel it, the might of his mantle blocking the pain, but he knew they were there, crawling down his arms, inching closer towards the selkie who was crying out for help.

What was one selkie? What did it matter? He was guilty of something, otherwise, he wouldn’t have run.

“Steve,” Danny grabbed Steve’s wrist blocking the vine’s path. They recoiled, moving away from his hand. “Let him go.”

Let him go? The mantle roared indignantly as Steve turned to look at Danny. The man’s eyes were wide with worry but determined. He would step in further if needed. Steve paused, thinking about Danny’s veil. He could shield individual eyes from seeing what was there. That was not an easy feat. There was no telling what else Danny could do. Or, Steve thought as thunder rolled overhead in the ever-darkening sky, what it could mean for the surrounding area. No one won when the Fae fought in the Mortal Realm.

Steve swallowed, taking a deep breath. The vines, listening to his will and reason, curled back under his skin, but they lingered there, waiting.

“We can’t. He did something.”

“Okay, yeah, I get that, but…” Danny chewed his lip before going behind the guy and jerking the hoodie off him.

The selkie shrieked twisting in Steve’s grasp. “Hey. No, give that back.”

Danny just moved away, folding the confiscated item over one arm. “He won’t go anywhere. Not without this. Now let him go.”

Steve wondered why he hadn’t thought of that and decided that he’d rather not think about it as his mantle slithered inside of him, making demands. He released the selkie who peered at both Steve and Danny helplessly.

“If I tell you what I know, will you give me my skin back?” he asked, pleading.

“Depends,” Danny said, running his hand over the skin. “Now talk. What do you know?”

The selkie sighed, his head hanging low. “I heard someone stole it. I don’t know by who or what, but everyone in the ocean is talking about it.”

“Everyone is talking about it, period,” Steve said. “Is anyone mentioning names?”

The selkie shook his head. “No. I heard some nymph mention a troll who lives on the island. Said he might know something, but that’s it.”

“What about this rule you broke?” Danny asked.

The selkie hesitated, his dark eyes moving from Steve to Danny. “I…” He started and stopped, unsure. Steve moved a step closer, and the guy jerked back in fear. “I came ashore before my time. I have a son with a mortal lady here, and it’s getting close to his seventh birthday. I know I’m not supposed to come before that day, but word got back to me they were having some troubles, and I wanted to help.” He gave them both a pleading look. “She got sick and can’t pay the medical bills. I came ashore early and have been working day jobs to make some money to give her.”

Danny’s face softened at the selkie’s words. There was some sympathy there.

Steve, however, fumed. Typical Fae. They always thought it was enough to just show up whenever. That they could come in, make a family and leave when it suited them. People would wake and they wouldn’t be there one day, or in the case of his mother, fake their death before returning to the Fairy realm.

“You think that you coming sooner is enough?” he said, his voice dipping lower. “You think that’s good enough?”

“Steve, what are you doing?” Danny asked, moving in closer.

Steve put out a hand to stop him, not taking his eyes off their perp. “You really think that’s good enough? She doesn’t even know, does she? You just up and vanished seven years ago leaving her with this kid. And then you think you can just show up again, as if nothing happened and think it’s okay?”

The selkie moved away from Steve, terrified. “I didn’t…”

That was enough for Steve. His pulled his restraints back, and his mantle roared to life. The vines shot out from his arms, aiming toward the helpless selkie. They would take him and make him an example to other Fae who thought about interfering in the lives of the Mortals.

“Stop it,” Danny said, stepping in the way. He cut his hand through the air, and the vines stopped, retreating once more. “Stop it, Steve. Obviously, you have some issues here. I know someone that can help, but I will not let you rip this guy to pieces over whatever you got going on inside your head.”

Steve snarled, the mantle howling at being stopped. Overhead there was another wave of thunder loud enough to rattle windows. The dock under their feet shook, and a streak of lightning lit up the sky.

It started to rain, hard. Within moments everything was soaked, including them. Danny’s slicked back hair fell to one side as he and Steve faced off.

“Danny, move,” Steve ordered.

Danny shook his head, the aura around him bright in the storm's gloom. “Not gonna happen.” He held Steve’s gaze for a second longer before taking a step back.

He turned to the selkie who hadn’t moved, either in fear or because Danny held his skin, watching everything before him.

“Are you telling the truth?” Danny asked.

The selkie opened his mouth but said nothing. Danny grabbed him by the collar, hauling him in close.

“Listen. I want the truth, and I don’t have the time or the energy to save you from this guy. So, tell me right now. Are you telling the truth?”

“Yes,” the selkie said. “Everything I said, it’s all true.”

“Where do we find the troll?”

“In the jungle to Windward side of the island. I don’t know exactly where though.”

Danny threw the hoodie back at him and let him go. “Alright. Get out of here and go spend some time with your boy. And if your lady doesn’t already know, you tell her what you are, so that when your kid turns fourteen and grows his own damn skin, she isn’t completely heartbroken when you come back to take him to sea with you, got it!”

The selkie nodded, rain dripping off him, and ran, clutching his skin to his body like a shield. Steve shut his eyes as his fists balled up at his sides. He couldn’t believe Danny just let him go like that. That guy… was just another Fairy creature living his life and not really hurting anyone, his mind supplied.

The mantle argued against that. It reminded Steve that the selkie would hurt that lady, that he surely had already hurt her, breaking her heart when he vanished all those years ago, and the boy grew up without a father. It reminded Steve that he knew all about that kind of pain. That his mother had done the same to him as a teenager. That his family grieved and separated because of her careless actions. He should punish the selkie for his crimes.

Steve stood there in the rain, his will battling against that of his mantle when he felt Danny’s hand on his arm. It burned and Steve jerked under its touch.

Danny shook his head as he looked at Steve, not with anger but something else. “Come on. My hold on this veil is getting weak. Let’s get out of here and find out more about this troll, huh?”

Steve’s eyes flickered to where he last saw the selkie running once more, but Danny’s hand gave his arm a squeeze. The mantle reacted strangely to Danny’s touch. It beat against Steve’s chest but quickly calmed down as an unrecognized warmth poured into Steve’s body. It pulled him back to himself as the mantle settled down, lying dormant for the time being.

He nodded his agreement. The rain slowed down, becoming a light drizzle. There was another faint roll of thunder, but it was off in the distance.

Pulling back from Danny’s grip, Steve turned to head back toward the Camaro. Danny followed, his legs moving quickly to keep up with Steve’s longer strides. As they passed by people, Steve saw the veil Danny put around them drop away.

“You wanna tell me what happened back there?” Danny asked as they neared the car.

Steve glared, but said nothing, slipping inside the car. His wet clothes clung to him, growing stiff as they froze against his body. Danny looked like he was already drying, and Steve sniffed in jealous disgust.

“You wanna be dry?” Danny asked.

Steve gripped the steering wheel, staring out ahead. He hated it, but he nodded once. Danny took one of his hands and shut his eyes.

“This might be uncomfortable for you, but you can crank the A/C,” he said.

At once, raw heat surged through Steve. It was painful as he felt like he was cooking from the inside out. He clamped his mouth shut as stream poured off him turning the car into a sauna. He threw open his door, letting the steam escape as he gasped for air, the heat too much for his Winter tempered body.

Danny finally let go, and the heat receded. Steve shook and fought to catch his breath, tears running down his face. He looked at Danny. He was fully dry, trying to fix his hair with the use of the small mirror on the back of the sun visor.

“You okay?” Danny asked, not looking at him. Steve opened his mouth to tell Danny off, but then Danny turned his head toward him. He looked genuinely concerned. Outside of his friends, Steve wasn’t used to being looked at in such a way. It made him feel soft inside, much to the mantle’s annoyance.

“Yeah.” Steve pulled his door shut, turning the car on and cranked the A/C up as high as it would go. He got a little kick when Danny shivered, crossing his arm over his chest.

“You wanna talk about whatever that was back there?”

“There was nothing back there. The guy pissed me off, that’s all.”

“Is that all?” Danny prompted, his teeth chattering.

Steve glowered. He didn’t want to talk about it, but Danny still had that worried look on his face, and Steve relented. “I just get angry when Fae drop into the lives of mortals and screw them up. It’s not right, and someone should do something about it.”

The concern morphed into something else on Danny’s face. “Sounds like you have some experience there?”

Steve shifted his jaw. “I think I’ve said enough.”

“Fine,” Danny said hunching his shoulders. “You don’t wanna talk about it fully, fine. I just think it’s healthy to discuss things.”

Steve threw the car in gear and sped away heading for the highway. “Drop it.”

“Alright,” Danny said, but Steve didn’t believe him. He had no plans to talk to Danny about anything inside his head. He didn’t need to. He didn’t want to. It was his problem, and he didn’t like to share.

“What about you?” Steve asked suddenly. “You went soft on the guy when he mentioned he had a family.”

Danny drew his lips in tight as he shivered, looking away. “So I felt bad for him. Big deal. He’s got a kid and trying his best. How could I not feel bad for him?”

“You’d be surprised,” Steve said. He examined Danny as best he could, still trying to keep eyes on the road. Danny was hiding something, he knew it. But that seemed to be par for the course. Danny Williams was just made of secrets and Steve wanted to crack him open like an egg and get every single one.

“Is there any chance of stopping for food?” Danny asked, changing the subject with as much subtlety as throwing a brick through a window.

Steve made a face and cut his eyes at Danny but went with it. “No. We’ve got a troll to hunt down, and I’m pretty sure I know where it is. So, no food.” He jerked the wheel harder than needed to make a turn, smirking as Danny yelped and grabbed the dashboard for support. “Besides, you look ridiculous. Your hair is all fluffed out like a poodle’s.”

“What!” Danny looked in the mirror once more, resuming his efforts to get his style under control. Steve stifled a laugh as Danny swore, opening the glove box and pulling out a comb. That would take care of any more questions for now. Steve wanted Danny’s secrets and could wait for them. He just hoped he could keep Danny out of his business until they figured out this case.

~*~

The forest was quiet. Or at least there was no sound from any of the local fauna. Danny, however, made enough noise for an entire army.

“I hate this place. I truly hate this whole fucking place. It’s miserable.”

Steve let out a sigh as he crouched down, checking the ground for signs of trolls.

“I never thought I would meet a Fae that hated being in a forest,” he said, standing up and continuing forward. They were close. There were no footprints, but he found broken branches and tracks in the dirt where something too large to be a boar had disturbed the ground.

“Sorry to disappoint you,” Danny replied from behind him. “But I’m used to cities. You know concrete, paved roads, pizza shops, and coffee stands? That sort of thing.”

“You spend a lot of time in the Mortal realm then? Hanging around in cities?”

There wasn’t an immediate answer. Steve found that interesting. He figured Danny would have plenty to say since other than the car ride to the Docks Danny always had something to say. Instead, Danny was too quiet, and it spoke volumes in Steve’s mind. He looked back at Danny. He looked lost and not present. Steve moved into Danny’s line of sight and the spell was broken. Their eyes locked, and Danny shook his head quickly.

“Not anymore,” he said.

Steve wondered why. Fae didn’t come to the Mortal realm to live, save for half Fae like Steve, but it wasn’t anything for them to pop in and out for periods of time. It was a way for Fae to keep abreast of what the humans were doing and if it would interfere with happenings in Fairy. What had happened that caused Danny to stop? And why did he hate forests?

A crash of trees up ahead kept Steve from looking into this more.

“I think that’s Yavo,” he said, running ahead. Danny grumbled something, but Steve couldn’t make it out.

When the selkie said something about a troll, Steve knew he was talking about Yavo. The troll had lived on the islands for a while now. No one knew why, and no one asked. Steve found it unsettling that it was a Summer troll, but since the creature never came out of the forests and was rarely seen by humans, he didn’t bother to find out why. As long as no one got hurt, it wasn’t his problem.

In the distance, Steve spotted Yavo. The sheer size of the troll struck Steve. Some trolls were tiny creatures, no bigger than a horse. Yavo stood like a great oak and looked like a cliff face. He could easily pass for a mountain with his large arms and legs and broad chest. Dead vines and bright green moss covered his body. Little plants here and there clung to his rocky features for dear life. How he had remained hidden for so long, even with Fairy magic, boggled Steve’s mind.

Yavo’s craggy features were impassive has he tapped on a tree. He studied it for a moment before pushing it over with one giant hand.

“How do you think we should approach him?” Danny asked, coming to Steve’s side.

Steve wondered that too. Yavo could crush them both with one foot. Licking his lips, Steve reached down to his belt, touching his badge. “We let him know we’re here and that we just want to talk. No tricks, no chases.”

“That sounds nice and all, but what if he doesn’t wanna talk?”

“Uh, we figure something out,” Steve said.

“Oh, that’s a good plan.”

Steve shot Danny a withering look before stepping forward. “Greetings, Yavo,” he called out to the troll. “Forgive the trespass, but there is an urgent matter we must speak to you about. Please know we do not wish to disrupt your day─”

Yavo looked from the tree he had just knocked over toward Steve and sneered, “Knight.”

Steve’s heart seized at the sound the troll’s voice. The rest of the words dried up in his mouth, and he could only stare. Danny stepped forward picking up the slack.

“Yavo, there’s no need for that tone. We just wanna have a conversation with ya.”

Yavo didn’t notice him. His dark eyes focused on Steve with open hostility. “Leave, Knight, and take your elf with you. I want nothing to do with the Courts.”

“Elf?” Danny squawked. “Who are you calling an elf, rock face?”

“Danny?” Steve hissed at him, his eyes wide. “Don’t piss him off.”

Danny huffed. “I don’t need to. He’s already mad about us being here.” Danny paused, his head tipped on one side. He looked thoughtful for a second and then said, “Wait, I think I know this troll.”

Steve huffed. “So what? Unless you had a bond with him, it will not do us any good.”

“Are you refusing to leave?” Yavo called out.

They could try again later. They could question someone else and see where that lead them, but Steve didn’t like leaving things alone. Not until he had all the facts. That selkie mentioned the troll for a reason, and Steve would find out what it was.

“Yavo, please, we just wanna talk. Only a few moments of your time is all we ask.”

The troll grunted. “So, you are refusing. Very well.” He reached down and picked up the tree he had just felled and hefted it up on his shoulder. With one step he brought himself closer to Steve and Danny.

“This isn’t good,” Danny said, stepping back.

“No, but I can deal with him.”

“Oh really? Well, this should be a barrel of laughs.”

Steve’s jaw shifted. “You know what, you should just go back to the car if you’re not going to help.”

“Or I could stay here and make sure you don’t become a greasy smear on the forest floor.”

Yavo stomped his foot making the ground move like an earthquake. “I will give you one last chance, Knight. Leave and take the hob with you.”

“Hob?” Danny’s chest puffed out like a bantam rooster and moved forward.

“Danny, stop,” Steve hissed, grabbing for Danny’s arm. Danny smacked his hands away like they were nothing.

“Hob? Excuse you? Who are you calling a hob, you overgrown boulder? I will have you know I’m Eladrin of Titania’s court, and you will show me some respect.”

Eladrin? Steve blanched. It wasn’t a term used often, but it applied to a special rank of Fae. Ones within the Royal family. Was Danny royalty? Maybe a low duke or viscount?

“You do not appear to be Eladrin, so your words mean nothing,” Yavo said.

Something in the trolls tone made Steve’s stomach roil. His mantle took notice too and gathered high in Steve’s chest, putting pressure on his rib cage.

“Danny, get back here.” He hissed. It was said Steve was risky and reckless, but even he knew that they would have a hard time fighting Yavo. They would need a plan or something to bargain with, but Danny charged ahead, throwing caution to the wind.

“Yeah, yeah, don’t let the glamour fool ya, pebble brain.” He stopped a few feet short of the troll. “Now listen, we just wanna talk. That’s all. We exchange a few words, and then we all go about our merry way, kapish?”

Shaking his head, Steve figured there was no other way now and joined Danny where he stood. Yavo for his part stared down at them, his dark eyes shifting from one to the other.

“I have nothing to say to you. Be gone.”

Danny licked his lips. “This isn’t going anywhere,” he muttered. He looked thoughtful before clapping his hands. “Alright. That’s fine. We’ll just go, but before we do, I just wanna say, I’ve heard about you and I know it sucks being stuck here in Mortal realm.”

“What are you doing, Danny?”

Danny waved Steve off with a hand as he continued. “You didn’t want to be here, but you knocked over one of Titania’s apple trees, and she kicked you out of Summer. A rough punishment to be sure. Now, if you would talk to us, maybe help us out, I could get you back in. It won’t be like before, but I have some pull.”

Danny had pull in Summer? Yeah, and Steve was a dwarf. He wished that Danny would just be quiet and let him talk. He had training in negotiations, sort of, and maybe he could get Yavo talked down to putting down the tree he was holding like a club.

No such luck. Yavo stomped his foot again. The ground shook so hard that Steve lost his footing and hit the ground. Danny remained upright but just barely.

“Hey, knock that off, you big lug,” Danny shouted, his arms out trying to steady himself.

“I said, be gone!” Yavo roared as he swung the tree.

“Danny, look out!” Steve shouted, but it was too late. The log hit Danny, picking him up and flinging him into a nearby tree. He hit the tree with a sickening wet sound and dropped back to the ground, unmoving.

Steve looked on in horror. The Fae were immortal, but not immune to injury or death if their wounds were severe enough. A cold fury built up inside Steve. He still didn’t know how he felt about Danny, but that’s what fueled his anger. Deep down he had wanted to know, and now there was no way. Danny’s body would turn to fairy dust within a few hours, and that would be the end of that.

Steve stood and pulled his badge off his belt, holding it loosely in his hand. “Yavo, I, Steve McGarrett, Son of Doris, Knight of the Winter Court, and Champion of Queen Mad, am charging you with crimes against Fairy. You will cooperate, or I will deal with you.”

The troll grunted, “I am not afraid of you, Knight.”

Steve inhaled, his body letting go of all restrictions on his mantle. Frost formed on his skin and under his boots as the vines slithered and wound their way down his arms. With a flick of his wrist, the magic that hid his badge’s true form fell away, revealing his great sword. He took it in both hands, spreading his feet in a fighting stance. He took another deep breath, and around him, plants shriveled and died as he took their life.

“You should be,” he said, and he lept.

He had no plan. He was just enraged. How dare this troll kill another member of Fairy? How dare this creature think he had any right to talk to him like he was beneath him? How dare he! The mantle of Knight unwound inside of Steve, joyous in its freedom. Steve would strike this lowly creature down and carry its head back to Mab before it could vanish from existence.

Vines shot out, wrapping around Yavo’s body, and Steve used his own momentum to swing up onto Yavo’s back. The troll attempted to pick him off, tearing at the vines, pulling some of them loose. Some vines snapped and broke in the troll’s hands. Each broken vine left Steve reeling pain, but he would not stop.

Bringing his sword around, Steve struck the troll hard between his shoulder. It didn’t cut deep, but he pushed the will of his mantle through, sending frost into the wound. Yavo screamed as Steve grinned.

Yeah, that was right. Take my partner, see what happens.

He pulled his sword back and hit the troll with another blow, same as before. Black ichor oozed out of the wounds tainted with frostbite. More vines rocketed from under Steve’s skin, plunging into the gashes. They pushed in deep, and Steve shut his eyes as Yavo’s life force was being pulled into his body.

In his rage, his glee, Steve had forgotten about the log. Yavo raised it high above and brought it down, knocking Steve on his back. The vines retreated under Steve’s skin, and his sword went crashing to the ground along with Steve.

Yavo panted and hissed in pain. “Cruel, useless Winter,” he said, his gravelly tone sounding weak. “I will not have you take me. I have lived for eons, and you will not be the death of me.”

Yavo raised the log again to bring down on Steve, but Steve rolled out of the way right before the log hit the ground. Yavo screamed and brought the log down again with Steve barely getting away. For as big as Yavo was he could move fast, but Steve could move faster.

Steve ducked another near miss and rolled to where his sword lay on the ground. He got to his feet, the full might of Winter coursing through his veins and ready to charge.

“Stop.”

Both Yavo and Steve stopped. The old tongue, used only by Oberon and the royal family, was never heard outside the courts, let alone outside Fairy. It rocked Steve’s senses and looked around. He spotted Danny standing where he fell. There was no sign of injury, and Danny stood surrounded by a golden light. Gone was his tie, and on his head was a silver coronet that gleamed with tiny gems.

He stepped forward, moving towards them. A breeze blew through, warm carrying the scent of apples and flowers. As Danny moved, the ground spit up new life with each footfall. Little saplings, vines, and flowers followed him in his wake. The ground turned greener and bloomed nearby. The earth itself hummed with life.

The ground shook once more as Yavo fell to his knees.

“Your Highness, I did not recognize you,” he rumbled, speaking in the old tongue.

Danny snorted and cocked his head to one side. “Of course not, I didn’t want to be recognized, but you forced my hand.” He had slipped back into English.

“I beg your pardon, Prince. Please, grant me mercy.”

Steve stood in shock as his mantle squirmed in the face of Danny’s power. Danny was the Summer Prince. No, that couldn’t be right. There was no Summer prince. Was there?

No. Steve had been away from the courts for a while, sure, but even he knew that Titania had a daughter, Aurora. She was the Summer princess. Yet the evidence was in front of Steve. It could be possible that Titania had another child, but surely he would have known about him. It made little sense, but Steve knew Fae royalty when he saw it, and slowly he got down on one knee, his sword down by his side.

“Okay, Yavo, Imma need you to do me a favor, okay? Drop the formalities. I really can’t deal with that now,” Danny said. His voice was strained with frustration, and Steve had to wonder why.

“Anything my Prince asks.”

Steve looked up as Danny rubbed his face with both hands.

“See? That is what I am talking about. You know what, nevermind. Yavo, we don’t want to fight you or cause problems. We just wanna talk. Can we do that?”

Yavo rumbled in reply, bowing lower. “Of course, Your Highness.”

Danny sighed and sucked on his lips, ready to say something else to the troll but shook his head and turned to where Steve knelt.

“Steve. What are you doing, babe? Get up.”

Never one to refuse a direct order from Fairy Royalty, Steve stood, taking his sword in hand and walked to where Danny stood. He wasn’t sure what to do at this point. He knew that if it was Mab or Titania, he would behave like Yavo, bowing his head and choosing his words very carefully. The cross look on Danny’s face, however, told Steve that if he so much as nodded his head in a polite fashion, Danny would lose his shit, so he stood there, facing the troll.

Yavo glared back at him, his mossy teeth bared. “It is not my place, but why are you here in the Mortal realm with this creature of Winter?”

Steve narrowed his eyes but said nothing. He didn’t need to as Danny stepped to answer.

“You’re right. It is not your place. Remember that. I will say this. I’m here working with this guy because someone decided that it would be a great idea to steal the Areadbhair and someone told us that you may know something.”

Yavo relaxed his face, looking thoughtful. “I see. Forgive me.” He rumbled quietly, one large hand scratching the top of his head. “I was unaware that the Spear was missing. Since my exile, I have heard little from the other side and what transpires there.”

Steve’s shoulders slumped. Unlike with the selkie, he had no reason to believe that Yavo wasn’t being honest. Not with troll’s Prince standing before him looking him dead in the eyes. Only that left them once more with no leads.

“Come on, Danny. We’re not going to get anything more from him,” he said.

Danny nodded, “Yeah. Just give me a minute.” He stepped forward to Yavo, touched the troll's arm. “Okay, Yavo, we’re going. I will do what I said and, uh, talk to someone. I don’t think I can get you back in Court, but I can at least see if you can come back to Summer, okay?”

“Why would you do this?”

There was a moment where Danny looked so sad that it twisted something in Steve.

“I know what it’s like to be away from home,” he said. “Now come here. You’re injured.”

It was quite a scene as Danny climbed up on the troll’s back like he was scaling a mountain while Yavo shifted and begged off. Steve wasn’t sure what was even happening and watched on dumbfounded until Danny reached the spot where Steve’s sword had cut into the troll’s back.

He placed his hands down on the rocky skin, and taking a deep breath, shut his eyes. At once his aura grew, closing in around him and Yavo, shining so brightly that Steve had to cover his eyes. The temperature in the forest rose, making sweat drip down Steve’s neck. He thought he would pass out from the heat, and he had to lean against a nearby tree for balance.

He’s healing him. Steve had understood that members of Summer could heal others, but he had never seen it in action. It was an impressive sight, or maybe it was only impressive to see Danny do it. Lowering his arm just a little, Steve was once more in awe of the man. Danny held fast to the troll’s back, glowing bright like the sun. Once more Steve was pulled in by how attractive the man was.

Danny looked like a beacon, summoning Steve and everything to him. In the edge of Steve vision, he could see animals nearby, drawn in by Danny’s powers. Steve’s mantle twisted and shuttered inside his body. It wasn’t uncomfortable, but it seemed just as charmed as Steve was by Danny at that moment.

Even with the surrounding magic, Steve knew that something was wrong. The light around Danny dimmed, and he lifted his hands from the troll’s back. With his aura fading, he now looked pale and wane. Dark circles were around his eyes and his cheeks looked hollowed.

“That should do it,” Danny said before he lurched forward and stumbled off of Yavo. Before Steve could move to catch him, Yavo reached out a hand and stopped Danny’s fall. The troll held Danny in one of his massive hands, looking down at him, concerned.

“Knight,” he called.

Steve moved forward, pushing his glamour back into his sword so it was once more just a badge. He clipped it back to his belt as the troll held Danny out to him. The coronet was gone, the tie once more around Danny’s neck. He didn’t look like a Fairy prince now. Just a man who was too pale, too frail and too small.

“Why is my prince here in the Mortal realm?” Yavo asked, cradling Danny in his hand.

“It’s like he said, we’re trying to find the Spear.”

Yavo shook his head. “No. This task is beneath him. Even you know that.”

Steve did. He shrugged his shoulders. “Look. I didn’t ask him to be here. That was Titania.”

“Where is his Knight?”

“I don’t know.”

Yavo frowned, giving Steve a careful look. “The prince never leaves the Court, and he should not be here without his knight.” Yavo handed Danny off to Steve. “If he has no Knight from Summer, then you must be his Knight. Take him. Care for him. Protect him.”

Steve held Danny in his arms, pulling him close to his chest. Inside, his mantle squirmed. Danny was so uncomfortably warm, yet Steve wanted to hold him as tight as he could.

“I’ll do my best.”

Yavo nodded his head and made a low rumbling sound. “See that you do.” The troll stood and turned. “Good day to you, Sir Knight. I wish you luck on your quest.” With that Yavo walked away. His massive frame moved silently through the trees and in seconds he was gone from view.

Steve readjusted his hold on Danny as he looked down at the man. Danny was the Summer Prince. So why did Titania send him to help look for the Spear? Surely, she could have sent some lesser member of her court. It made no sense, and Steve worried at his lower lip, walking back to the car. He didn’t want to get into Fairy politics, but it would seem that he didn’t have a choice.

~*~

With no other leads and Danny down for the count, Steve drove the Camaro back to his home. He had placed Danny in the backseat. Danny didn’t move the whole drive back, and Steve didn’t wake him. He didn’t want to take Danny inside, being he kept his house so cold, so he set him up a place to rest on the upper deck of his house outside his bedroom, wrapped in a blanket.

He had nothing but time on his hands now, and that made him restive. He paced downstairs, mulling over things in his head. He had been away from the Courts too long, so he didn’t know exactly what was going on in Fairy, but something strange had to be going on for Titania to send her Prince on what could be a wild goose chase in the Mortal world.

He chewed on some bread and drank a beer, leaving his lights off. The cold temperatures and low lights helped him think, regain his strength. He turned over everything in his mind yet nothing about the situation made sense to him.

Knights were disposable. Royalty was not. He knew that Mab, as mad and cruel as she could be, would never send out her daughter Morgan for something like this. She had even sent Morgan away to stay in a pocket dimension away from both the courts and the Mortal Realm just in case. That freed up a lot of Steve’s time since he didn’t need to watch her. So, what was Titania thinking? Even if Danny was a cast-off child, it wasn’t something that was done.

It all made his head spin. He didn’t understand what was going on?

“How’s it going? Any luck yet?”

Steve knew Jenna was there before she spoke. He turned slowly to face her, letting his expression tell her all she needed to know.

Jenna, thankfully, wasn’t dense, and with the shadows cast around the darkened living room, she understood. “That well, I see.”

Steve gave a tight-lipped smile.

“Mab’s not going to be happy to hear it, but it has only been a day, so…” she continued.

Steve snorted and sat down on the couch, an old leather number that once belonged to his father. “Jenna, what’s going on in Summer?” Steve asked.

Jenna’s eyes widened jarred by the question. “What do you mean?”

“I mean what I said. What is going on in Summer? Why is their Prince passed out on my deck right now? Why is he the Prince? What happened to Aurora?”

Jenna sat down next to Steve, despite her distressed expression. She chewed on her lip and fidgeted with her hands. “I don’t know, but what I do know, no one’s supposed to talk about it.”

“No one’s supposed to talk about it?” Steve narrowed his eyes and leaned into Jenna’s personal space. “What do you mean by that?”

Jenna leaned away, his hands up ready to defend herself. “Just that. Look, I know nothing about the Summer Court except one day Aurora was gone, and some guy was in her place. No one talks about him, and he never leaves Summer. Ever.”

Steve glared at her hard. So, Danny just showed up as Prince? “Is that all you know?”

Jenna squirmed under his gaze. “I...um… Okay.” She stood and moved across the room, away from Steve. She was shaking, her arms crossed over her chest. “So, remember when I got banished?”

“For almost killing me, yeah, I remember.”

Jenna looked pained, but nodded her head, “Well, that was part of a power grab. The Fae I was working for was trying to break down the courts. His plan was to start with the Princesses, Morgan and Aurora, but he couldn’t get to Morgan, so he went after you instead.”

“Who was this Fae?” Steve’s mind reeled. The Fairy courts were a constant power struggle, but no one ever actively worked to overthrow the balance. There was an order to things, and while everyone postured and made petty threats, no one would dare attack the royal family.

At least they weren’t supposed to…

“A low duke in Winter, Wo Fat,” Jenna said. “He’s like you, Steve, only part Fae, but he somehow impressed Mab enough that she gave him a place in the Court. Turns out he wasn’t thrilled with his ranking and wanted more power.”

“So, what does this have to do with Danny and Aurora?”

Jenna shrugged. “I don’t know. After everything happened, and Mab banished me, there was a lot of talk about Summer, but it was all hush-hush stuff. Only that Mab and Titania had a meeting with Oberon and then told people that everything was fine.”

Everything was fine... that was the biggest load of bullshit that Steve had ever heard. He sighed as he stood, pacing once more. “What about the Summer Knight?”

Jenna shook her head. “No one’s heard from him in a while.”

That told Steve everything he needed to hear on that subject. Knights weren’t quiet. They weren’t meant to be quiet. Even with Steve spending all his time in the Mortal realm, members of Fairy knew everything about him and where he was. It was for their safety to know.

“Okay,” he said. An idea was forming in his head, and he didn’t like it. As soon as Danny woke up, they had a lot to talk about. “I know you probably have to report to Mab, so just let her know that we’re following some leads, and I’ll keep you posted.”

Jenna looked uncertain. He chewed on her lip and looked like she was about to say something. Steve waited but then Jenna gave a nod of her head and was gone.

Steve stood alone once more in his living room. He went upstairs and checked on Danny on his deck. The man was still out cold. Steve checked his pulse and temperature before heading out of the house. He needed to grab a few things he would need to make nice. He had a feeling that if he wanted Danny to talk, he would need to butter him up first.

~*~

The house was still quiet when Steve returned. It had him worried Danny was still passed out, but when he went upstairs to check on him, Danny was wide awake, although he hadn’t moved from the chaise lounge. He had the blanket pulled up to his chin, which Steve found impressive. Even though the sun was setting, it was still warm out. Then again Danny was Summer. Being warm was sort of his thing.

“How’re you feeling?” Steve asked, setting down the tray he brought up with him, taking a seat in the chair beside Danny’s.

“Like I got hit with a tree.”

Steve let out a low laugh, barely a breath. “Yeah, I imagine you do, buddy. Yavo slammed you pretty hard. I thought he killed you.”

“Is that why you went bat shit crazy on his back?”

Steve didn’t answer. Instead, he averted his eyes. His heart picking up speed in his chest.

Danny sat up, the blanket falling into his lap.

“You’re still into me, huh?” he asked. “Even after I tell you I’m from Summer and working with you. All that bluster and being an ass was just some smoke screen.”

“No,” Steve blurted out. “I have questions, ones only you can answer, and it pissed me I wouldn’t get those answers. Besides, he attacked without provocation and was obstructing our investigation.”

Danny’s lower lip stuck out, nodding his head as Steve spoke like he was considering everything he was being told. “That and he called me an elf.”

“What?” He couldn’t believe this guy. What’s more, he couldn’t believe himself. He liked that Danny wanted to wind him and charm him at the same time. He hated to admit that it was working for him.

“Yeah, well, we see how wrong he was, Your Highness.” Steve looked directly at Danny as he spoke. Danny squirmed, looking away. Steve pushed forward. “Why didn’t you tell me who you were? Why didn’t you come to find me as Jenna told me you would? I had to find you, and I wasn’t even looking. Were you planning on showing up, or were you just going to leave me to do everything?”

Danny bounced a fist on his leg, his gaze off in the distance. His ears were flushed, and he licked his lips. “I’m sorry,” he said. He still wouldn’t look at Steve. “I… came here, and I was going to look for you. Hell, I even knew where to find you because I was told where you would be, but…” He took a deep breath, hanging his head. “This was my first time back in the Mortal realm in ages. I wasn’t sure I could trust you, and I just wanted a little time to be myself again.”

“Explain.” Steve leaned forward, his hands grasped together between his knees. This was it. His heart pounded in his chest and his mantle coiled around it, waiting. He would get his answers. He just hoped they didn’t drag him to some stupid Fairy bullshit.

“Okay, so you know how all this works, right?” Danny started. He pushed off the blanket completely, letting it fall to the floor. He turned, facing Steve completely, his feet on the floor. “How the courts are made up, how they work, yadda yadda…”

“Yeah, Oberon is the High King of all Fairy, but he lets his wives Mab and Titania run everything unless there’s a big problem.”

“Pretty much, but mostly do you know there always has to be a Queen and a Princess, or in my case, a Prince?”

This threw Steve a little. In some way, he knew, but it was more the understanding that there always had been a Queen and a Princess for each court. Everyone else, the knights, the courtiers, they were interchangeable, sometimes left empty if needed, but the Queens and Princesses were eternal.

“Okay, yeah,” he said, not sure where Danny was going with this.

Danny tilted his head, watching Steve, before continuing on. “Well, until about six months ago, I didn’t. I was just a cop in New Jersey, chasing down some guy who kidnapped a young girl. The girl had escaped, and he was trying to get her back. I was trying to get him arrested and her to safety.”

He paused, looking down, wringing his hands together. “I failed on both counts. He caught up to her before I could catch him, and he stabbed her. He stabbed her with the gnarliest looking knife I had ever seen. It was twisted and rusty, and he stabbed her so many times. I fired on him, but it did no good. He ran, and I tried to save her.”

He sniffed, and though Steve couldn’t see his face, he knew Danny was crying. Steve’s stomach twisted up as he knew what had happened.

“It was Aurora, wasn’t it?”

“Yeah, that was her name. Her real name,” Danny said, wiping his eyes with the back of his hand. “At the time, I was told it was Sarah, and her mother was just some rich bitty who said that someone had kidnapped her for a ransom. I learned later that wasn’t the case at all. Turns out Fae think the Mortal Realm is quaint, and they like to take day trips.”

Steve sat quietly for a moment. Things were coming together, but something still didn’t add up. “How does any of this have to do with you being the Summer Prince?”

“Good question,” Danny said, a mirthless laugh escaping his lips. “There has to be a princess or at least someone in that role. Turns out if the princess dies, the closest Fae in proximity inherits their title and powers automatically.”

Steve sat back in shock. “You inherited her powers?”

Danny nodded slowly, his lips draw tightly.

“But how? You said you were a cop. Did you know you were Fae?”

“I didn’t, and I’m not. Not fully, but my grandmother was, and turns out being a quarter Fae is good enough in these cases.” Danny ran a hand through his hair. “I didn’t understand what even happened. I just felt… different somehow. Next thing I know, I wake up in a whole other dimension with this huge guy with antlers on his head, staring down at me while the woman who I thought was just some rich bitty is demanding my head on a spike.”

“You must have been terrified,” Steve said. He couldn’t imagine. For all the things he was never told when he became the Winter Knight, he at least knew how he got the title. Danny was dropped in with no information at all.

“You have no fucking idea,” Danny said. “I was so pissed off and confused and everyone talked over me or like I wasn’t even there. In the end, the guy with the horns, who I learned later was Oberon, decreed that I was now the Crown Prince of Summer and the rich bitty─”

“Lemme guess,” Steve said, “Titania.”

Danny gave another tight-lipped smile. “Yeah, Titania, she just had to deal with it.” He gave another mirthless laugh. “She was pissed. Foaming at the mouth mad. She said I got her daughter killed. That it was my fault. That I didn’t even try to save her. That I needed to be punished. Then she stormed off, left me with Oberon, and he just called in some courtiers to take me to my chambers.”

He put his head in his hands, rubbing his face. His shoulders slumped, and he looked so small. Steve reached out, his hand resting on his shoulder. It must have startled Danny, as he jerked back. He stared at Steve, his blue eyes dull, wet from crying, his mouth hanging open.

At that moment, Steve forgot everything. He wasn’t the Winter Knight. Danny wasn’t the Summer Prince. They were just two people sitting together, one telling the other his tragic tale in an effort to make them understand some flaw in his character. He pulled his hand away and gave Danny an encouraging nod. He wanted that understanding. He wanted to know Danny’s sorrow. More than maybe he wanted Danny’s confidence and companionship.

He understood how Danny felt in a way. A mortal that found himself in Fairy with little to no understanding of how their world worked. He didn’t belong in Fairy, but he didn’t fit in the Mortal Realm either. He was an island and so was Danny.

Off in the distance thunder rolled, sounding off the threat of another storm. Steve only half heard it. He was looking at Danny, and Danny was looking at him, both of them lost and hoping the other was a map.

Danny swallowed hard, the muscles in his neck moving. Steve realized that Danny had been talking for a while and held up a finger. “Here,” he said. He remembered the tray he brought up, picking a cup up from it and handed it to Danny. “It’s honey wine. I stole a couple of jugs of it from the last Equinox festival.”

Danny took it but didn’t drink. He just looked down at it, studying it. He waved a hand over it and the liquid boiled for a second.

“What was that?” Steve asked.

“Habit,” Danny replied. “It became a thing to check all my food and drink, just in case. Now I do it just because.” He took a drink of the wine and shut his eyes for a moment. “Okay, that’s the real deal.” He took a long drink and let out a soft little hum of approval.

“Wait,” Steve said. “Are you telling me that someone has tried to poison you?”

Danny blinked, stunned. “Yes, Steve. Let me tell you about all the, quote, accidents that have happened.” He snorted. “Accidents, cause you know, no one would ever deliberately try to kill off a member of the Summer royal family in their own court. That would be ignoble and wrong. But accidents? They happen all the time to some dummy who’s just become the Prince, and the Queen hates his fucking guts.”

He finished the wine and held out his glass. Steve refilled it without a word. Danny drank that too and laid back down on the lounge chair. He shut his eyes, holding the empty glass in both hands. “You got anything to eat over there?” he asked after a second. One eye opened, looking at Steve hopefully.

“Yeah, I got some fruit, some fresh bread, some─”

“Is there any pizza, like real pizza? Dough, sauce, mozz?”

Steve shook his head, “No. I can get some. I know a place that makes a great Hawaiian.”

“That’s not pizza,” Danny groaned. “That’s an abomination. Forget I said anything.” He shut his eyes again, and it seemed like that was the end of the conversation.

That wouldn’t do. Not for Steve. He had gone to the trouble of getting all this together, to get answers out of Danny, to have that damned connection, and he would not be swayed because Danny was a picky eater. He reached back to the tray and picked up a small box. “I have these,” he said.

Danny opened his eyes again and peered at the box. “What’s that?”

“Cocoa puffs. Freshly baked, all natural ingredients.” He held out the box to Danny. “Try one. You’ll like ‘em.”

Danny took the box and opened it, looking at the contents suspiciously. Then he looked at Steve, his expression softening. He took one and bit into it. The face he made was comical.

“Oh, my god! These are amazing.” He took another bite, finishing off the pastry, and a grabbed another. “These are the best things I’ve ever eaten, and that’s having eaten my ma’s eggplant parmigiana.”

A warm joy filled Steve. Inside his mantle squirmed and shuttered under the emotion. Steve ignored it. This feeling was so rare anymore he welcomed it. “Between these and the malasadas you ate this morning, I’m getting the impression you like sweets.”

“I do.” Danny licked his fingers. “I really do. So much so I used to bake. Back when things were normal. I had this chocolate chip cookie recipe that killed every year at my little girl’s school bake sale.” As the words escaped Danny’s lips, something came over him. His face fell as he sucked on his lips. He looked like he might cry again.

Steve reached over taking Danny’s glass and filled it again, pushing it back into his hands. He took a glass of his own because at this point Danny would be three drinks ahead of him and that wasn’t fair.

“You have a daughter?” Steve prompted. He couldn’t be sure if Danny would answer. This seemed harder, more personal as Danny looked away, pushing the box of cocoa puffs aside.

“Yeah,” Danny said after a few seconds. “I have a little girl named Grace. Best thing that ever happened to me, and I haven’t seen her in six months.”

Now Danny’s reaction to the selkie’s tale made sense. He would be more sympathetic to the guy if had a kid himself. Steve found he couldn’t even be angry like he was with the selkie. Danny didn’t ask to be Fae. It just happened.

“Why so long?”

Danny whipped his head around, glaring. “Why do you think?”

Steve pursed his lips, the obvious answer hitting him hard. “Because of the whole being a Prince now and not being safe.”

“Right. Of course, it’s my fault. It’s not like I can’t leave and see my daughter whenever I want. I just refused to go outside of my chambers half the time, but last time I set foot in the Mortal realm, I nearly got skewered by a piece of iron rebar. The only reason I’m alive is that I asked my Knight to go with me, and he pushed me out of the way at the last minute and got hit instead.” Danny fidgeted with his glass, shaking his head. “Shame too, he was a good guy. I liked him a lot”

“Titania never picked someone to replace him?” Steve asked. Danny just shook his head.

So, the Summer Knight was dead. That answered another of Steve’s questions. And if Titania wanted Danny gone that badly, she’ll never find a replacement. Part of the Knight’s role was to protect the Royal family of their court. Steve had it easy there. Mab didn’t need protection, and She packed Morgan away somewhere safe. Danny, on the other hand, needed someone desperately to watch his back.

“You know what?” Danny said, pulling the blanket back on to his lap. “I’m tired of talking about me. Your turn. How did you get like this?”

Steve drank some of his wine and shrugged his shoulders. “Not much to tell.”

“That’s bullshit and you know it.”

Steve made a face and thought about outright refusing. Danny’s expectant face made him change his mind. He wanted companionship. Then he would have to learn to give a little. Only a little though.

“Well, Mab offered me the title of Winter Knight, and I took it. That was eight years ago.”

He sipped his wine, feeling confident in his answer. The expression on Danny’s face seemed to say otherwise.

“That’s it?” Danny asked. He sat up again, bunching the blanket around his waist. “You were just offered the position, and you took it?”

“Yeah, that’s it.” Steve wasn’t sure he wanted to say more. The decision he made all those years ago was something that weighed on him. He didn’t know if he would ever be prepared to explain it all in detail. That would be too much like self-examination, and Steve never found that helpful.

“Try again, but better this time, okay?”

Steve’s nose wrinkled with annoyance, glaring hard at Danny. “What did you mean by better? What do you want me to say?”

“I don’t know but something more than I got an offer and accepted it.” Danny leaned forward, his face close to Steve‘s. “Did you know what was going on? What you were being offered?”

Steve swallowed hard, being this close to Danny. Those blue eyes bore into his own as Danny’s breath hit Steve’s skin. It was so intimate that Steve found himself opening his mouth.

“I was in BUD/S training and it was rough. They tell you to look at the man to the right and left of you and know that one of you isn’t coming back tomorrow, and they were right. Every day someone was missing, but we went on with training like they were never there.” Steve leaned away. Danny was too close, in his space, and the oncoming memories were making it hard to breathe.

“I had just kept my best friend from dropping out. I had to tackle him to the ground to do it, but he stayed. Only I thought, what if I couldn’t make it?” He took a sip of his wine and refilled his glass.

“It worried me.  I was scared I wasn’t good enough and that I would fail. It kept me awake at night and then it happened.” He looked down at his hands, and for a moment, they were dusted with snow. He shook his head to clear away the image.

“I thought I was dreaming. It felt like a dream. I was in an open field covered in snow. And more snow was falling down around me. It was so beautiful that I just looked around amazed. Then I saw this woman, dressed in a blue and white gown. She was so stunning, just standing there in a field holding a sword, smiling at me.”

The memories rushed forward as he spoke, and Steve let out a laugh at how naïve he had been. “She told me I could be the best. That I could be stronger, faster than the others. That no other mortal would surpass me. She could give me that and offered that sword, offered to let me be her knight.”

It was all so clear, like he was back in the field, snow falling down around him. Mab stood there smiling, her lips painted a thin icy blue that stood out from her pale skin. Her hair was long and so white and pristine that it almost blended in with the snow falling around them. And in her hands was the sword, steely and cold.

He reached for it; the metal burning his skin as the cold rushed inside him. It chilled him down even past the bone. His heart seized, and there was nothing before him but pure Winter.

“Steve!”

Danny’s hand reached out, grabbing Steve’s wrist. The shock of the sudden warmth pierced through the memories, bringing him back to the here and now. Gone was Mab, the snow, the sword. He was back on his upper deck, looking into Danny’s worried expression.

Steve’s whole body shook, but he didn’t pull back. Danny’s hand burned against his skin, but in a way that Steve wanted to burrow into it. His hand gripped Danny’s wrist in return, his other hand placed over Danny’s, trying to soak as much of that warmth as he could.

The shaking stopped, and the memories faded. He sat there looking at Danny. Danny’s golden aura shining just above his head, like a halo. It transfixed Steve, soothed him. He held on to Danny leaning in once more toward him.

“I didn’t fully understand what I did, but she was right, you know? I was faster, stronger than the others. I could hold my breath for longer and run farther. Everyone noticed. Everyone praised me. I was the best. I even got a call from my father telling me he had heard how well I was doing and that he was proud of me.”

Steve choked up, a sob threatening to break loose. This was too much. He hadn’t wanted to give all this, but he was in it now. He let go.

“It felt so good. I hadn’t spoken to my father since my mom died.” His expression darkened. “Well, we thought she had died. Turns out she wanted to go back to Fairy.” A sudden resentment filled Steve, and his mantle perked up, waiting to see what he would do with the emotion.

“That explains your deal with the selkie,” Danny said.

Steve huffed, “Yeah.” That was all he offered there. He pushed the resentment away, buried it under other emotions and took a step back. He was already telling so much more than he thought he would. That would be a story for another day.

He sighed, thinking, rubbing the back of his neck. “My dad called me, and said he was proud of me,” he said again. It was as overwhelming now as it was back then. His eyes burned as tears formed. One rolled down his face, and he quickly wiped it away, a flush of shame coming up his neck. He pulled away from Danny’s hand and looked away.

“Then I found out what I really got. A lot of power but at the cost of my humanity. I went across the world for the Navy and all over Fairy for Mab. I used my powers for both, and every time something inside me rejoiced as another part died. Then one day I found myself at a crossroads. I had already stopped going to Court because of an attempt on my life. My father had just been murdered by a man I had been hunting down for years, and I was being given a chance to do some good here in the Mortal realm.”

He looked back at Danny and smiled. “So, I took it. I am what I am, but until the last of my humanity is gone, I’m gonna save people. From other people or from Fae, it doesn’t matter.”

It was all out now. Well, most of it. The worst of it and Steve felt better somehow. Lighter. Inside his powers roiled around but with no malice or anger. A sense of peace had come over his mantle, too.

Danny looked at Steve, a subtle smile on his lips. He never pulled back from Steve, never leaned out of his space, and Steve was grateful. Even Chin and Kono, for all their love and compassion, had backed away at least one or two steps back when Steve told them what he was. They had tried to understand but couldn’t, not fully. Danny didn’t need to understand. He already knew.

“Was that better?” Steve asked.

Danny chuckled, licking his lips. “I don’t know if that’s the word I would use, but it was honest.” He laid a hand on Steve’s knee. “I think I appreciated that more. I get the impression that wasn’t easy for you.”

“It wasn’t. It’s not something I talk about.”

Another crash of thunder sounded off much closer than before. It was almost right on top of them. Where there should have been a beautiful night sky, there were only dark clouds. The winds picked up, making the palm trees in Steve’s yard sway back and forth. It picked up Danny’s hair, ruffling it so that some of it was hanging in his face.

Tentatively Steve went to brush it away but stopped just before he touched a strand. He paused, looking at Danny, unsure if he should continue. Danny’s soft smile told him it was okay, and Steve pushed it back. His finger grazed Danny’s forehead, and they both shuddered.

“You still going to be giving me shit about being attracted to you?”

The rain came down. Big fat drops hit them and the deck one at a time. There was an electric charge in the air, enveloping them both. Danny’s grin was wide and cheerful as his aura filled in around him.

“Maybe not. I don’t know.”

Steve huffed a laugh, shaking his head. Danny was teasing him again.

“You know, you seemed pretty into me at the bar last night.”

Danny’s grin was even brighter. “Yeah, I was. If you hadn’t been the Winter Knight, I would have definitely gone home with you.”

Steve grinned fully. “I hate to break it to you, buddy, but you ended up coming home with me, anyway.” He gestured around them. The rain was coming down harder, and the thunder was louder than ever. It crashed overhead, and both men jumped at the sound. They both laughed at themselves and each other.

“Okay, fair point,” Danny said.

“I think so. And to add to that point, that door right there,” Steve pointed, “leads right into my bedroom.”

Danny burst out laughing. He looked stunning, soaking wet, his hair plastered to his head, his eyes crinkled with laughter. Steve could only grin stupidly in return.

“That has to be the least subtle pickup line I have ever heard. Did you think that would work?”

Steve shrugged playfully. “You tell me.”

This whole time Danny’s hand never left Steve’s knee. It remained there, its weight and heat burning into Steve’s skin for so long that Steve was sure it would leave a mark. It traveled up Steve’s leg as the look in Danny’s eyes told him exactly what he wanted to hear.

He took Danny’s hand in his own and stood, pulling Danny up with him and into his arms. He bent his head down and was rewarded when Danny’s lips met his. Like the hand on his knee, the touch of Danny’s lips burned, but like with the hand, Steve welcomed the sensation. It burst past his lips, down his neck and exploded in his chest, shooting out to every part of his body.

Taking Danny’s face in his hands, Steve pulled him in closer, never taking his mouth off the other’s lips as he walked them backward back inside to his bedroom. Danny held on tight to him as he moved, his fists balled up into his tee. It was so good that Steve didn’t want to break contact, but he also wanted more. Reluctantly, he broke the kiss, his hand moving to the buttons on Danny’s shirt while Danny’s pulled at Steve’s tee, all but threatening to tear it off of him in his attempts to remove it from Steve’s body.

In his haste, Steve stole glances at Danny’s face. His hands had left frosty handprints on the other’s skin, and Danny’s lips had turned a soft shade of blue. He hadn’t thought about that, what his touch would do to Danny, and he tried to take a step back. Danny, however, took him by the waist, holding him in place.

“Babe, what’s going on?”

“Your face,” Steve stammered out.

Danny frowned and looked into the mirror on Steve’s dresser. He blinked in surprise, but snorted, turning back to Steve. “It’ll heal,” he said before pulling Steve down for another kiss. Steve didn’t expect that, but he wouldn’t question it. He just hoped Danny was right. Otherwise, they were both going to have some embarrassing marks in the morning that no amount of lies would explain away.

They continued removing each other’s clothes. The act held no finesse or style to it, just the drive to expose as much skin as quickly as possible. Everything ended up in a wet soggy pile on the floor as the two men, now nude, pulled one another down on the waiting bed.

As hungry and desperate as Steve was to move forward and start digging for the lube, he wanted to explore Danny first. Since Danny was okay with the print of his hands on his face, Steve drew out every touch, every kiss, to see how it would look on the other’s body.

His lips left icy kisses that melted away quickly. His tongue made long and wide stripes of frost running all over the other’s neck and shoulders. His fingers drew intricate patterns in the same soft blue as before.

Danny didn’t seem to mind and was taking his time doing something similar to Steve. His touch was like a fire that left Steve’s skin red and slightly raised. The only time Danny protested was when Steve ran his hands lightly down his left flank, and he giggled, smacking his hand away. “Stop that! It tickles.”

Steve ran his fingers over that spot one or two more times before Danny got fed up with this behavior and pushed Steve on his back. He straddled his hips, and Steve gasped at the feel of his hardened cock pressed against the crack of Danny ass. All the playfulness drained out of Steve as he suddenly wanted to bury himself deep inside Danny and never leave.

Danny loomed over him, a smug little smile on his face. Like this, Danny looked every bit like a prince, regal and sublime, even more so without his clothes on. It left Steve in awe, words forming on the tip of his tongue, pledging fealty and complete devotion. Danny just pressed a finger to his lips before leaning down, stealing all those words with another kiss.

More warmth spilled out into Steve, hotter than before. A hand snaked up Danny’s back feeling every muscle.

Outside, rain beat on the windows and another crack of thunder shook the house. A jolt of energy coursed through Steve’s body, shaking him as he rolled them both, putting Danny down on his back.

“Someone likes to be in control,” Danny muttered against his lips.

“Shut up,” Steve grunted back. He shifted his body, lining up their cocks. They rubbed together, and Danny let out a short gasp as Steve whimpered. “Let me fuck you,” he whispered.

“Are you sure you can handle it?” Danny cupped Steve’s face in his hands. His touched burned his cheeks and Steve let out a long hiss as the heat penetrated down to the bones.

“Yes.” Steve moved his mouth to kiss one of Danny’s open palms. He nuzzled there for a moment, his breath picking up before looking at Danny. “I want it. All of it.” He now craved the burn. He wanted to be buried in, have it ground him.

Danny held Steve’s face for a moment, his eyes moving around, searching. Steve wondered for what it was the other was looking for. Truth, comfort, a sign telling him if this was a good idea or not? Whatever it was Danny must have found it. He pulled Steve’s face closer to his own and kissed him.

The moment their lips touched Steve melted against Danny. He felt his entire world crumbling away and he couldn’t bring himself to care or miss it. This was better than keeping people at arm’s length or doubting them. It was pure, and he reveled in the feeling.

“Alright, babe. Let’s do this,” Danny said ending the kiss.

“A little eager, aren’t you,” Steve quipped. He pinned Danny down with his hands, grinning down at him, before diving into his neck.

Danny groaned, his hips jerking under Steve. “You animal. You said─” He didn’t get out the rest as Steve nipped at Danny collar bone, leaving little frost covered marks. Danny’s hips jerked again, letting out another gasp.

“I know what I said, but I don’t want to rush this.” He emphasized his point, as he licked up Danny’s neck, exhaling as he did. Under him, his Danny shivered and swore.

That was the best part. Not just having Danny or the anticipation of fucking him, the way Danny reacted to his touch. Every gasp and moan was delicious and pushed Steve onward.

Slowly he drifted down Danny’s body, his tongue reconquering places he had explored before. Previous marks had faded, so he made sure to add to them, making each one stand out vibrantly against Danny’s pale skin.

Reaching Danny’s hips, he scraped his teeth along the bone, following its trail down to the mass of blond curls. He nuzzled there, inhaling deeply. Danny’s scent was strong there, filling Steve’s nose with musk and sour apples. He hummed contently as he exhaled, running his hands over Danny’s thighs. Danny’s own hands had found themselves in his hair, carding through the strands. Steve found it as soothing as he did arousing.

He lifted his eyes. Danny stretched out on the bed, his body covered in icy blue marks and frost patterns. He looked regal and relaxed. His eyes though, looked hungry and demanding, sending shivers through Steve’s body.

“You look cozy, babe,” Danny drawled. “You want a blanket or something?”

Steve snorted and nipped at one of Danny’s thighs. Danny let out a satisfying yelp before Steve got to his knees and flipped Danny over on his stomach. “I guess that’s your way of telling me to get on with it.”

Danny growled, pushing off the bed before Steve could move to drop himself over him. He took Steve by the hair, tugging it and pushed them both back down on the bed, with him once more on top. “Yes, but I’ll be damned if you’re going to fuck me on my stomach like some back-alley hooker.”

“Wha-” Steve started but Danny tugged on his hair again. The act jumbled Steve’s thoughts and all he could let out was a low moan. Danny let go and sat up straddling Steve again.

Outside the storm raged on, the thunder crashing and rattling the house. The rain beat against the windows as if trying to break inside and lightning lit up the sky like the noonday sky.

In one flash, Danny glowed golden, his lips parted and his dark eyes burned bright. It was sublime, and Steve lifted both hands up to Danny in supplication. Danny smirked, leaning down, ghosting his lips over Steve’s quickly, before sitting back up.

“Where’s your lube?” Steve moved to sit up, but Danny pushed him back down with one hand. “Just tell me,” he said.

“Over there,” Steve said, pointing to his nightstand.

Danny slipped off of Steve and edged over toward the nightstand. Steve went to sit up and make a grab for Danny’s ass. Seeing it straight on was too enticing to give in to the temptation. Danny thwarted his attempt when he batted his hand away.

“Like I said, animal.”

Steve grinned and tried again, this time grabbing a handful of one cheek and digging his nails in. Danny didn’t slap his hand this time but turned, lube in hand, and tackled him.

“You keep saying that, but I don’t think you mean it in a bad way,” Steve said.

Danny looked thoughtful and smiled. “Jury’s still out.” He sat up and popped out the cap on the lube bottle, carefully squeezing out a health measure on to his fingers. Steve watching on in awe, his hand running up and down Danny’s thighs.

The touch of his skin burned his fingertips. In fact, the heat that poured off Danny was overwhelming, Steve sending into a fervent fever. It was almost oppressive, but he laid under it, letting it coat him like a fog.

Danny leaned over him, one hand pressed into the bed at the side of Steve’s head as the other reached back behind him. His face was close to Steve’s, adding to the claustrophobic sense of arousal that was flooding Steve. Steve panted almost tasting Danny’s scent. The aroma of apples and flowers filled his head, making him dizzy.

“You’re beautiful,” he breathed.

Danny bit his lip and looked away for a second before meeting Steve’s eye once more. “Flatterer.”

“I mean it,” Steve said. Right then Danny was to the most stunning thing he had ever seen. He didn’t think he would get over this anytime soon, and if he was lucky, maybe he wouldn’t have to.

Danny shook his head and leaned closer for another kiss. He cut it off quick though, straighten his back sitting up. He wiped his hand off on the bedcovers. Steve knew what that meant and frowned

“Will that be enough?”

Danny chuckled. “It’s fine.” He looked down at Steve taking his expression. “I’ll be fine. I’ve spent a lot of time alone. Let’s just say I’ve had to find ways to fill up my time.”

That admission made Steve’s heart ache as he could feel Danny’s loneliness. It pierced his heart. “Maybe things will be different after we find the Spear.”

Danny huffed, “Maybe, but right now I’m not worried about that and I don’t think you should be either.” He reached back taking Steve’s cock in his hand. He gave it a few slow strokes. The sensation went straight to Steve’s brain, and he tipped his head back, his mouth falling open.

“You’re right. More important things going on right now.”

Danny smirked lifting himself up, still holding on to Steve’s cock. Carefully he lowered himself down, pressing Steve’s cock against his hole. Gingerly, he helped guide it so that the head pushed through inside. He hissed and waited, panting lightly, before continuing down.

Once he was fully down, Steve felt mad. Danny squeezed around him from all sides, encasing his cock fully. The heat was exquisite and breathtaking. In one moment, he felt both utterly lost and found.

Danny stayed still on top of him, his eye closed tight as his chest heaved. Steve felt helpless wanting Danny to move but remained still, so he could just drink in the sight of him. Slowly Danny rolled his hips around in a small circle, adjusting to the feel. Then he rocked forward, opening his eyes looking down at Steve.

It was incredible the way his eyes pinned Steve down to the bed. He felt bare, stripped of everything, even his mantle. “Danny,” he sighed, arching his back. His hand grabbed Danny’s hips hard. “Please, more.”

Danny shushed him, laying his hands flat on Steve’s chest. “Thought you didn’t want to rush this.”

Steve whimpered, his own words coming back to bite him. He didn’t know if he would last long like this. He wanted to pull Danny under him to ravage him. He didn’t dare move. This was his prince, and the other demanded his submission. Steve relented, offering it.

He laid back, relaxing, letting Danny control the pace. It was slow, agonizing, perfect. His eyes slid shut, his hands resting against Danny’s thighs, letting the movement of Danny’s hips take him away.

The pressuring inside his body built up, encouraged by the pure white heat that was spilling over him. “Oh fuck, Danny.” It was the best Steve could say. It wiped his mind of all sense.

“Steve, touch me,” Danny moaned. Steve didn’t need to be told twice. He eyes flew open and locked on Danny’s face as he took Danny’s cock in hand and jerked it. He started slowly, but the feel of it in his hand, its thickness and warmth pushed him to move his hand faster. Danny moaned and cried out, egging Steve on more.

“Steve, wait. Not yet,” he panted.

“Don’t worry about it,” Steve said. He had given Danny his submission, but it could only last for so long. He wanted to see Danny come. It consumed him. “Come on Danny. Let go. Let me see. Please!”

Danny grunted and whined, his hips moving faster. He panted out Steve’s name over and over. Steve let the sound wash over him. It was more than he could hope for and when Danny came, it was bewitching. His back arched, his head thrown back, a soundless scream escaping his lips. His cock shot out long ribbons of semen, hitting Steve’s stomach and chest. Steve kept jerking him off as Danny’s hips shuttered and jerked to a halt. He let go when Danny slumped over him, boneless. Steve’s cock slipped out, and they laid there panting.

“Sorry,” Danny muttered against Steve’s shoulder.

Steve licked a wide stripe up Danny’s face before kissing his cheek softly. “We’re not done yet,” he whispered. He roiled them over, with Danny on his back, once more pinning the other down.

He took his own cock in hand, pumping it furiously, pointing it right at Danny’s stomach. He leaned in kissing Danny’s face, alternating lips, and tongue over Danny’s skin, letting his enthusiasm take over.

He came with Danny’s name on his lips, his seed spilling out over Danny skin. He worked his cock a few more time, squeezing out the last drop, before letting go of his cock and running his hand over the mess they just made.

His touch lightly froze his semen, but he could still spread it around, marking Danny’s stomach with it as it dried. Danny watched all this looking amused.

“Are you doing what I think you’re doing?” he breathed out.

Steve nuzzled his neck and smiled, pleased with himself. “Yes.”

“Animal,” Danny said affectionately.

“Yes,” Steve said again, curling around Danny.

The storm had quieted down, and the thunder was just a distant memory as the rain beat softly against the windows. It’s gentle sound filled Steve’s ears and lulled him to sleep with Danny in his arms.

~*~

It was morning when Steve’s eyes opened again. The storm had passed in the night, leaving clear blue skies filled with a large rainbow over the ocean. Beside him on the bed, Danny slept soundly, fully wrapped up in the blankets. For the longest time, Steve didn’t move but laid there on his side, studying the other.

Danny looked much the same, only not as tired. The lines in his face had softened, and his mouth was open just enough to give him a slightly younger appearance. His hair fell over his face, and it was a struggle for Steve to not sweep it away to get a better look. He didn’t want to wake Danny, though. Not right then.

Quietly, he slipped out of the bed, grabbing a pair of swim trunks and their still dripping wet clothes from the night before off the floor. His routine was to go out for a swim every morning, and today would be no exception. He changed the routine as he stopped to place their wet clothes in the washer to top off a load, leaving Danny’s tie out to air dry, and to start a pot of coffee. He didn’t drink coffee until after he swam and showered for the day, but he had a feeling that Danny was more the type to drink his coffee before doing anything else.

The early morning sun was warm on his skin, but after feeling Danny’s touch, it didn’t seem as hot. It was more like a friendly good morning than an unwelcome intrusion. The water still felt the same. It welcomed him with open arms as he dove in, chilling as his body glided through the waves.

A swim was just what he needed to stretch out his muscles. It had been a while since he had slept with anyone, Mortal or Fae. It was never something he thought of, except in passing, and even when he took someone to his bed, it was always more of an itch to be scratched. Once the moment was over, he was ready to move on.

This morning Steve’s thoughts lingered on Danny, what they did and how it felt. He longed to do it again. It was an interesting idea. More than that, it was an exciting one. He wondered if after this was all over if he could convince Danny to stay in the Mortal realm with him. Even if just for a little while. He remembered Danny’s talk of his daughter, and while the thought of using the girl as an excuse to keep Danny here with him was unsettling, it also felt like a solid plan.

He was Winter. There was no such thing as fighting fair. Inside his mantle agreed calmly. It was more at ease this morning. It didn’t writhe around and demand work like always. It curled up inside him like a slumbering dragon, content and at rest, but still ready to strike when needed. It was a peaceful feeling; one Steve was ready to hold on to at any cost.

When he emerged from the water, his body tired but his soul content, he saw Danny sitting in one of the Adirondack chairs by the water’s edge. He had dressed in one of Steve’s old Navy tees and a pair of sweats that hung over his feet. He sipped on a mug, watching Steve walk toward him, his eyes still full of sleep as his hair blew gently in the breeze.

“You look good out there, babe,” he said as Steve took a seat in the chair next to him.

Steve smiled, brushing away icy crystals that were trying to form on his skin. “So do you. I think I like this look. You should dress like this for the rest of the day.” Or the rest of his life, Steve’s mind supplied.

There was something about Danny in his clothes that made Steve’s heart speed up and a greedy part of him take hold. He liked Danny in his clothes after waking up in his bed. He would have to work out a way to keep this happening again and again. Forever if he could.

Danny snorted and rolled his eyes. “You’re kidding, right? I can’t go out like this, I look homeless.”

“You don’t look homeless. You look comfortable. That’s a good thing, right?”

Danny peered at him, his gaze studying Steve for several long seconds. It was like he was reading Steve’s thoughts and emotions. It worried Steve. Then Danny smiled.

“Okay, I will give you that. I am comfortable, but I can’t go out like this. Not when I’m working. It’s not professional.” He settled back against his chair, tipping his head back, basking in the sun.

Steve clicked his tongue but said nothing more, only excusing himself to get a cup of coffee for himself. When he returned, Danny hadn’t moved. They sat like that, quietly drinking their coffee, the only sound was the water lapping at the shore. The peace was only broken when Steve reached out and took Danny’s hand in his own.

Danny’s head lifted, his eyes questioning for the moment. Steve offered a smile and a pleading look. He wanted this so badly, to feel Danny’s skin against his own. The man’s warmth bled into Steve, its heat once more welcome and comforting.

Danny huffed a laugh and leaned his head back once more, wordlessly letting Steve have this moment. Steve’s mantle shuddered briefly before settling down once more. It was a perfect moment in time, the two of them, sitting on the edge of Steve’s little beach, peacefully enjoying each other’s company. Yes, Steve would give anything to keep this for as long as he could.

~*~

The moment couldn’t last forever, unfortunately. They still had to locate the Spear, and they were no closer to it than they were when they set out yesterday. That irked. Usually, when Steve worked a case, he had something to go off of. It only meant that they had to work that much harder today.

They ate breakfast, with Danny lamenting Steve’s choice of healthy granola and fruit. His complaints were silenced when Steve offered to put extra brown sugar in his portion and let him have the first crack at the shower.

Steve wanted to join Danny, push him against the wall and make him scream out his name over and over, but alas, Danny did not indicate he would be welcome. So, Steve busied himself with putting the laundry into the dryer, checking the tags on Danny’s things to make sure they wouldn’t shrink and clearing away the things he left on the upper deck the night before.

Once he had his turn in the shower and dressed, he offered to drive Danny back to where he was staying to change into a set of his own clothes. That made Danny laugh.

“My car is right outside, Steve. I could leave any time.”

The words stung, but only for a moment as it occurred to Steve that Danny could have left at any time. He could have gotten up after he came to, told Steve, ‘I’ll see you in the morning’ and left. He hadn’t. Even after he woke up, he stayed. Sure, Steve took his clothes and put them in the wash, but Danny merely helped himself to whatever he could find that fit and drank Steve’s coffee, sat out on his beach and ate his food. Excited energy buzzed though Steve at the implications.

That excitement only grew as Steve read the smile on Danny’s face that seemed to confirm what he was thinking.

Once Danny had changed, and all but forced Steve to take him to Liliha Bakery to get more cocoa puffs, (“No man should be forced to work off granola alone, Steven”), they headed out to continue working the case.

They tried talking to local Fae, who combed the beaches and hung around the tourist parts of Waikiki. Everyone had heard something about the Spear being missing, but they didn’t know any more than that.

Steve didn’t know if he could believe anyone, but the looks everyone gave him, a mix of fear and reverence told him that most people knew better than to lie to him. Danny for the most part, pressed in gently when some kicked back, not letting his glamour down but still managed to put people at ease.

“Why are you still hiding you’re Summer’s Prince?” Steve asked while they walked away from a pair of Fae, day tripping from Fairy to surf.

Danny waved a hand. “It’s not a good idea to advertise that I’m out in the Mortal Realm. It puts me at risk for another accident and I don’t know who I can trust.”

“You trust me, right?” Steve hoped Danny did. His plans of convincing Danny to stay, as uninformed as they were, depended on that.

“Yeah, I trust you. You think I would have done what we did last night if I didn’t?” Danny replied.

Steve beamed, feeling on top of the world. Danny trusted him and that felt right. They got to the car and Steve leaned over the roof. “Well, I figured maybe it had been a while, and you were just pent up or something.”

Danny peered over at him his expression deadpan. “Now that you mention it, it was more like an act of desperation. I mean what else could it have been? I had sex with you. I think I’ve hit rock bottom.” Danny’s words dripped with sarcasm but held no malice.

Steve laughed as he got into the car.

They drove around for a while, thinking of their next move while Danny ate the cocoa puffs, occasionally holding one out for Steve, which he took happily, giddy at how safe and domestic this all felt. Still, something nagged at him and he didn’t know how well Danny would react to him prying, but when had Steve let something like that stop him before?

“So, your daughter,” Steve started, “Is she still in New Jersey or…”

Danny held a pastry halfway to his mouth and turned to look at Steve like the other had just suggested they drive to the moon, “What are you doing?”

Steve shrugged, keeping his eyes on the road. “I was just asking. You mentioned you don’t get to see her because you never leave Fairy out of fear. I was just wondering where she was, like if you were to go see her, where that would take you.”

Danny sucked on his cheek, tossing the uneaten cocoa puff back into the box and sighed. “You let one guy stick in their cock in you and suddenly he thinks he’s got a right to ask questions like that.”

“I was just wondering, okay. I didn’t mean anything by it. I was curious.” Steve’s tongue slipped out the lie easily. He was curious, but he did mean something by asking Danny where his daughter was. If he knew he could use that information to give Danny a reason to stay. Somehow.

Danny said nothing for a moment but looked out the passenger window, his eyes barely taking in the outside world. “She’s here,” he said.

Steve's heart leaped in his chest. “Here? On O’ahu?”

Danny nodded looking grim.

“Danny that’s great. You should go see her.”

Danny shook his head, “No, or at least not right now.” He sucked on his lips. “I wanna go see her, but…” Danny twisted in his seat turning to face Steve. “Look, when this whole me becoming the Summer Prince thing happened, I was in the middle of a very ugly divorce. When the dust settled, my ex got custody and immediately remarried before moving here. I can’t just pop in to see Grace because I would have to call Rachel first tell her I’m here, which would open a whole new can of worms between us, I’m sure, and I don’t know if I want to lead anyone to my daughter. I like the idea of her being safe, so…” He shut his eyes his face looking like he was in pain. “I feel like I should keep my distance.”

Steve had been dividing his attention between Danny and the road up to this point, but that would not do here. He whipped the wheel of Camaro, making Danny yell that he was insane, and found a place to park.

“Danny, you can’t not see your daughter. You’re here, in the same place she is. Call your ex, tell her you wanna see your kid. If we have to we go over there today, but you need to do this.”

“It’s not that easy, babe, it’s really not.” He blinked doing a double take, “What is this ‘we’ you’re talking? How is this a ‘we’ thing?”

“I thought I could go with you. If you wanted. I know you’re worried about something happening to you or her, and you wouldn’t have to worry about that if I was around.”

“Very bold of you assume that would deter people, Steve. Last time I tried to see my child, I had my Knight with me and it got him killed. People are not going to care if you’re with me or not.”

Steve snorted and made a face. “Danny, no offense, but no one was afraid of the Summer Knight. I didn’t know the guy, never met him, but I never heard people talk about him. Ever. Now me,” Steve pointed a finger at himself poking his chest, “People talk about me and they don’t have nice things to say.”

“I am aware. I’ve heard the stories,” Danny said.

“See?” Steve grinned. He reached out taking Danny’s hand. “You wanna see your little girl? Then I will go with you and make sure nothing happens. You need a Knight, Danny. You shouldn’t be alone, and as long as I’m around you won’t be.” He offered the other a gentle smile, pouring his heart into it. “Trust me.”

He looked into Danny’s eyes, giving his hand a hard squeeze. He didn’t know how well he was managing but he tried to put so much into that squeeze. Danny must have picked up on it because his body relaxed and he squeezed back.

“You’re right. We will visit my daughter, but only after we find the Spear, and this is all over.”

Steve internally cheered. He grinned, not letting go of Danny’s hand. There was the sound of thunder in the distance, but not a cloud in the sky. “After this is done,” he echoed. “And if you need a place to stay, my door is open.”

Danny laughed, “More like your bed is open, but I appreciate it.”

“Bed, door, same difference,” Steve said. He gave Danny’s hand another squeeze before taking it back. Once more they pulled out into traffic, Steve feeling overjoyed. Danny side eyed him with a soft smile on his lips.

“One problem, babe,” Danny said, “We are no closer to finding the Spear.”

Steve’s bubble of happiness deflated. “No, we’re not.” He tapped on the steering wheel in thought. “We need to regroup and brainstorm. Maybe bring in more help.”

“Help? Who are we asking for help?”

Steve smiled and made a sudden U-turn, once more causing Danny to scream at him.

“You’ll see.”

~*~

The look on Chin and Kono’s faces when they saw Steve stroll into the bullpen were comical, but not unexpected. They figured that they wouldn’t see Steve again for at least a few more days, given past experiences.

“Hey, boss. Did you find the Spear already?” Kono asked.

“Nope,” Steve answered walked to where she and Chin stood next to the smart-table. He leaned on it. “We’ve run into some dead ends. So, we’re trying to brainstorm. Thought you could give us some ideas based on what you’ve been learning from that professor.”

Kono smiled, excusing herself while she ran back into her office.

Chin raised an eyebrow, “You are letting us in on this one?”

He had a right to be skeptical, so Steve let it pass. “Maybe a little. I also wanted you guys to meet who I’m working with.”

Danny had stayed back from Steve, looking around the bullpen and eyeing Chin and Kono with an air of uncertainty. Steve waved Danny over, beckoning him closer to where he stood.

“It’s alright, Danny,” he promised as Kono returned, carrying a rather thick book in her hands.

Danny approached the table slowly his gaze shifting from Steve to the others, trying to gauge any threat he might be under. Steve placed a hand on Danny’s shoulder and beamed at his friends.

“Chin, Kono, this is Danny Williams, Prince of the Summer Court.”

“A Prince?” Chin’s eyebrow shot up, his eyes wide.

Kono looked gleeful, “Oh my god, that is so cool.”

Danny paled, staring at Steve as he had just lost his mind, “What are you doing?” he hissed.

“I told you, it’s fine. They’re my friends. They know about me and some stuff about Fairy. They’re cool.”

Danny glared at Steve before attempting to smile at the other two, waving a hand. “Hi,” he said, his voice weak.

“It’s nice to meet you,” Chin said. “I’m Chin Ho Kelly, and this is my cousin, Kono Kalakaua.”

“Hi,” Kono said, waving. She stopped immediately and turned to Steve. “He’s a prince, so do we need to bow or…”

“Please don’t,” Danny said. His face was flushed red, and he had both hands shoved firmly in his pockets as he looked down at the floor. “It’s awkward for everyone, so just don’t.”

“Uh, Danny’s still new to being a prince,” Steve supplied. “So, I think we can leave off with the formalities.”

Chin gave an almost understanding nod, while Kono looked disappointed. Danny tugged on Steve’s arm and lead him over to the far side of the bullpen.

“Babe, really, what is this?”

Steve wrinkled his brow, “What do you mean?”

“What I mean is, why are you telling them everything? Are you crazy? They’re mortal!”

“I know that Danny, but I work with them. They’re my friends and ohana. I trust them, and they trust me. I’m not going to hide anything from them.”

“That’s all well and good, Steven, but I don’t know them. I want to hide things. You know why.”

Steve’s ears reddened at the sudden realization of what he had done. “Danny, I’m sorry. I didn’t think, but you said you trust me. Well, you can trust them too.”

Danny sighed, looking torn. He shook his head, rubbing his face with his hands. “Why are you doing this, Steve?” He peered at his expression, confused. “I don’t get it. You’re throwing me into this and what for, huh?”

Steve looked around the room, Chin and Kono were watching them intently, their worried expressions telling Steve he needed to fix this quickly. “I just wanted you to be safe,” he said. He laid his hand on Danny’s shoulders and peered down at him. “After last night and everything you’ve told me, I wanted you to know that you have people in your corner. Chin and Kono always have my back, and I know they’ll have yours too if you let them.”

Danny’s face softened, his eyes brightening. Steve’s heart sped up as his stomach fluttered. He leaned in to kiss Danny. He drew up short though when Danny laughed.

“Stars and Stones, Steve. I did not know I was that powerful.”

“What?” Steve asked.

“Yeah, I mean one night with me and the infamous Winter Knight turns into marshmallow fluff. I’m fucking magical.” He continued to laugh.

Steve jerked back, scowling.

“Nothing of the sort, Danny. I was trying to be nice, but I guess it’s a wasted effort.” He stormed away back to where Chin and Kono stood, turning his back on Danny, who was still chuckling to himself.

“Aw, boss, that’s sweet,” Kono said. “Danny, don’t let Steve fool you. He really is a big softy when it counts.”

“I’m beginning to see that,” Danny said. He slid in place next to Steve, who had decided to ignore the other for now.

Chin and Kono also grinned, their beaming smiles turned on Steve as he felt heat rush up his neck. It was an effort to not pull his shoulders up and duck his head. He was still their boss. He needed to maintain a semblance of control.

“Just because I don’t act like some power-crazed monster all the time,” he grumbled.

He cut his eyes to Danny who smiled up at him softly, his eyes full of affection. Steve’s stance relaxed a fraction as he turned his head to face him head-on.

“That’s a good thing, babe,” Danny said. “I for one am glad that you’re not a monster.”

The Knight’s mantle inside Steve curled petulantly but didn’t twist or rebel. It remained rather docile like it had all morning so far. Steve wondered about that. It hummed under his skin as little dark vines appeared just under the surface of his flesh. They stretched out down his arms toward Danny.

Danny meanwhile glowed softly, just a hint of his true nature shining through. It made sense in a way. Winter and Summer were opposites and didn’t always get along, but there was a stronger pull here.

A Knight needed a Prince or Princess to protect. Steve didn’t protect Morgan or Mab. They took care of each other or themselves. He was just a grunt. Danny though, a man born in the Mortal Realm, conscripted into Fairy with no say in the matter and feared for his safety, he needed someone in his corner.

Steve’s mantle recognized this, and Danny’s powers responded in turn.

“If you two are done making googly eyes at each other, let’s talk about this Spear.” Kono dropped the book in her hands loudly on the smart-table, startling everyone. Steve and Danny cut their eyes away from each other to face her embarrassed.

Chin simply frowned. “Easy, cuz. This is delicate equipment.”

Kono rolled her eyes at him, before tapping on the book. “So, I went through some of the books I have by Professor Mercado, and I found some stuff on the Spear in this one.”

Steve picked on the book and looked at it. “The Legends of The Fae and How They Shaped History.” He wrinkled his nose and thumbed through the pages before looking at the back cover.

There was a large portrait of the writer on the back. Richard Mercado was a well-dress handsome man, possibly in his forties, with dark hair and eyes, and incredible cheekbones. Steve stared at the image, something niggling in the back of his brain. “How long has he taught here on the island?”

“I don’t know,” Kono said. “Why?”

Steve continued to look at the man’s picture, frowning. Something about the man was off, sending out alarms in Steve's head. He held the book out the Danny, “Is there something about this guy you notice?”

Danny glanced at the back cover and then did a double take, jerking the book out of Steve’s hand. He stared at it, mouth open, “Steve, I know this guy.”

“You do?”

“Yeah,” Danny held up the book jabbing it with a finger. “This is the guy who killed Aurora.”

Steve froze, looking at the picture, “Are you sure?”

“Yes, Steven, I am sure. There’s no way I would forget that guy’s face. This is him.”

“What are you guys talking about?” Kono asked.

“Yeah. Who’s Aurora?” Chin added.

They both peered over the table, their faces marred with confusion. Steve felt his body go ice cold as his mantle unfurled and roared to life. The vines under his skin popped up like blacken veins and curled around, ready for action.

“Aurora was the Princess of Summer and Titania’s daughter,” Danny said. “She was murdered, and I inherited her title and powers.” He raised a hand as Chin and Kono both opened their mouth to speak, “Don’t ask, it’s a long story that deals with eons of Fairy law and a bunch of stuff that I still don’t fully understand.”

He put down the book, dropping it like it would bite him before taking Steve’s arm. “This guy’s been hiding here under everyone’s nose. How? We had APBs out for him everywhere. The Feds even got involved, so how did he manage to not get picked up?”

Steve barely heard Danny over the rushing of blood in his ears. He thought back to the conversation he had the night before with Jenna. “Danny, I think this guy’s a Fae. That’s how.” He wiped his mouth and headed toward the door of the bullpen, “More than that, I think he’s the one who tried to have me killed.”

“What?” Danny shouted after him, still standing by the smart-table.

Steve stopped by the door and came back, “I told you. Someone tried to take me out. Only that person told me that she was working for someone else. A low Duke in Mab’s court. He wanted the Princesses, but he couldn’t get to Morgan.”

“So, he went after you,” Danny said.

“Yeah, and now he’s lying low here, teaching at the local college.” He huffed a laugh. “Brilliant really. He used glamour to cover his tracks, hide in plain sight and teach Fairy Folklore. No one’s gonna question it.”

He looked to Chin and Kono, who were both looking at him in complete shock. “Guys, whatever you do, stay away from him from now on.” He turned back to Danny, “C’mon, we got to go.”

“Go? Go where?”

“To get this guy,” Steve exclaimed. That seemed obvious. His mantle thought so. It raged inside him screaming for blood.

“Steve, we a need a plan,” Danny countered. “We can’t just swoop in and grab this guy.”

“Danny’s right,” Chin said. “As far as anyone else knows he’s just a professor, not a murderer. You’re gonna need proof.”

“I have Danny! Danny recognized him instantly, so we have an eyewitness. We use that as our proof.”

Steve’s mantle twisted and churned. There was too much talking, too much worrying and not enough action. It was ready and Steve was too. His body vibrated with the need to go, catch this guy, and do his job.

The others though just stared at him. Kono had picked up the book, looking down at the back portrait like if she stared at it long enough she could pinpoint something that would confirm this man was a killer. Chin and Danny looked like they had Steve’s back, but they would not go in without more to make this as smooth as possible.

It hurt in a way. Steve knew it wasn’t that they didn’t want to help, but they hadn’t rallied behind him instantly. He looked at all three, his anger growing. This was why he worked alone, this was why he kept his friends in the dark, this was why…

“Steve, babe,” Danny cut into his thoughts. “We want to get him too. I want him nailed to a wall, but we gotta think about this.” He moved toward Steve, one hand outstretched.

Steve reached back. Something inside of him knew Danny was right. The four of them could come up with a plan, bring this guy in and have him face Titania for his crimes. It might even make Danny’s life easier, as Titania would have the one responsible for her daughter’s death.

It was logical, practical, but drowned out completely by his mantle. It tore at his thinking, ripping it apart, demanded blood and justice. It was too far gone, that even listening to its Prince wasn’t enough to calm it down.

“No,” Steve said. He started back toward the glass double doors. “If you’re not coming with me, then leave me alone. I’ll be back later.”

“Boss, wait,” Kono cried after him, but it was too late. He was out the door and rushing down to his truck. If they weren’t with him, then he didn’t need them.

That was heartbreaking. His ‘Ohana, his Prince, he wanted them to be there for him. He needed them, but he couldn’t wait. If he didn’t go now, there was no telling where the guy would end up. He’d be lost to the winds.

Still not having the others with him. It stung.

Steve tried explaining this to his mantle. It understood. It wasn’t unreasonable, just harsh. Winter was swift and gave no mercy. They had a job to do. Catch this guy and make him pay for his crimes, find the Spear, seek their next target. It was the life that Steve had chosen all those years ago.

His mantle curled in the center of his chest and tried to assuage him. It even sought to offer comfort but failed. So it pushed out cold throughout Steve’s body, hardening his resolve.

He was Winter. There was no room for family and no room for someone like Danny.

Steve made it outside with little fuss and hopped into his truck, throwing it in gear and pulling out into the street. He was on a mission. He would deal with the fallout later.

~*~

The campus of the University of Hawai’i at West O’ahu was mostly empty. Steve only spotted a few students here and there out and about. Perhaps everyone was in class, or maybe there was something else going on somewhere else on campus. The emptiness of grounds and buildings made Steve’s skin crawl. He pushed on, going through the history building searching for where the faculty had their offices.

He found Mercado’s office door and tried the handle. It opened for him; the door swinging inward slowly. The room before him was dark, only a little light shining through the closed blinds covering the window. Steve pulled his gun and entered, looking around every corner for anything. There was no one there.

Steve stood in the center of the room, thinking about his next step. Did he try another location, or did he wait? What if the guy already knew that Steve was coming for him and fled to Fairy or some other realm?

He should have listened to his friends. Together they could have formed a plan and make quick work of this. Now he had to stop and think what his next step was.

“Steve.”

Steve turned and faced Jenna who was standing in the doorway. The low light hid parts of her face, but what he could see she had been crying. The hairs on the back of Steve’s neck stood up, and he raised his weapon to her.

“What are you doing here?”

Jenna bit her lip and looked around. “I… Steve you shouldn’t be here.”

The room grew colder; the light dimming. It wasn’t his powers doing this, nor Jenna’s. “This was a trap,” he said

“I’m sorry,” Jenna said. “But Wo Fat came. He had the Spear. He threatened me, my friends, my…” Her voice trailed off.

Frost hung in the air as Steve stared at her. He turned to look behind him while keeping his eyes on Jenna. As far as he could see no one else was in the room but them, but he could feel someone else waiting and watching.

“Jenna, you don’t have to help him. We can work together on this. Help me catch him.”

Jenna shook her head, “I can’t. He has someone I care about and I promised them I would keep them safe. He will kill them, Steve. Do you understand?”

The room grew darker and seemed to change its shape. They were no longer in the Mortal realm, or at least not fully. They were somewhere in-between, the room blending in Winter. There was snow under Steve’s feet and somewhere off to the side were trees.

“Jenna, we can save them, whoever they are, but I need you to tell me what is going on first.”

Jenna shook her head once more and started to say something. Her body jerked forward, and her mouth opened, blood pouring out.

“Jenna!” Steve moved toward her, but she was jerked away. She had the Spear sticking out of her chest. It sprouted thorny vines that looked a lot like Steve’s own. They were thicker though and the points on them sharper. They crackled with electricity that made Jenna’s body jerk and shake with their power.

“I didn’t think you would be one to listen to anyone. You didn’t listen to your friends.” Said a voice from behind her. Her body jerked one more time before falling to the ground. Richard Mercado, nay, Wo Fat stood there. He pulled the spear from Jenna’s body and faced Steve, a subtle smile on his face. “Sir Steven, how nice to meet you face to face.”

Steve stared. Wo Fat held the Spear, like a warrior proud of his work, Jenna’s blood dripping down its shaft. Steve fired off a shot, but it didn’t reach its target. Instead, it bounced off a force in front of Wo Fat, flying off into the ever-growing nothing surrounding them.

“Did you think that would work?” Wo Fat asked. “You didn’t think I knew your little tricks, Knight.” He laughed. “I know all about you. Why do you think I came here to Hawai’i?”

“You’re here because of me?” This surprised Steve. He kept his weapon up between them, not sure how much good it would do. His mantle unfurled throughout his body, the vines coming up out of his skin, curling in the air like snakes.

Wo Fat seemed unimpressed with the display. He moved in closer; the spear held tightly in his hand. “Yes. When my last plan failed, I knew I needed something more.”

“And you used Jenna again.”

“I did,” Wo Fat said. “She has her uses, and when I learned that Mab would use her as a messenger, I figured you would have no choice but to give her some of your trust once more. It was easy to manipulate her. She had made peace with losing her place in the court, but she had a lover. A tree spirit from the Solitary that she cared about. I captured him and promised her his safety for her help.”

Steve snorted, “You’re not going to win. You won’t get my powers, just like you didn’t get Aurora’s.”

Wo Fat’s face darkened, the smile gone. “That was unfortunate. I did not know that the detective was of Fairy blood, but it doesn’t matter. I will strip him of what is rightfully mine in due time.”

One of Steve’s vines lashed out, whipping a tendril at Wo Fat. He dodged it, using the Spear to deflect its strike. Steve struck out once more only to miss again.

“Leave Danny alone.”

The smile was back, “Oh my. What is that I hear in your voice, Sir Steven? Is that emotion? Affection maybe? Are you taken with this man? A Knight pining for a Prince. How clichéd.”

Wo Fat moved in closer, circling Steve. Steve kept his gun on the man, moving in step with him as his vines licked at the air around him looking for an opening. “If you lay one finger on him, I swear…”

“You will swear nothing,” Wo Fat shot back. “You don’t see the bigger picture here. Then again, you’re just like the rest of Fairy. Petty, stupid and short-sighted.” He stopped moving and looked at Steve. “I have the upper hand. I have the Spear and the backing of one of the Fairy Queens.”

The blood drained from Steve’s face, his body frozen in shock, “What?”

Wo Fat grinned. “You seemed surprised, and that’s fair, but I have found emotions are exploited easily. A grieving mother will do anything to avenge her child’s death.”

“Titania is helping you? But you killed Aurora. Danny saw you do it.”

“She doesn’t know that,” Wo Fat said. “All she knows is that her child is gone, and she’s stuck with the man who did not save her as a member of her court. A man who took her daughter’s title and power, just because he was the closest to her when she died.”

The stunned silence overwhelmed Steve. In his hands, his gun wavered as he grappled with what he was being told. “You manipulated her,” he said, holding on to one thought that rang true.

“Not really. It didn’t take much on my part. I just sought her out and offered a kind and sympathetic ear. Allowed her to express what she was thinking. Something that Oberon refused her. Then I offered her my help.” Wo Fat’s smile glimmered in the surrounding darkness. “I offered suggestions and ideas. Then I told her I would take care of things for her, but I needed something first.”

“The Spear.” Another of Steve’s vines lashed out. Wo Fat knocked it aside too.

“Yes. It’s useful, even though Lugh himself never called on its power. He was afraid of it. They all are, but not me. Now I have it, I plan on making good use of it.” He hefted the Spear, pointing it at Steve. It crackled and hummed. It shot out a lightning bolt that Steve barely missed being hit with.

He hit the ground, his gun flying out his hands and landing away from him. Another bolt shot out of it and he rolled out of the way, the snow under him clinging to his clothes. He reached for his badge, but another bolt came toward him and he had to move quickly to dodge it too. In doing so he lost his hold on the badge. Another bolt shot out and hit it. Its glamour faded away, leaving Steve’s sword exposed. Steve moved toward it but more lighting stopped him. Wo Fat would not let him retrieve his sword or make any move to help himself.

“Once I take care of you, I will take out Danny. That will make Titania happy and distracted. She already thinks I’m someone she can trust. I’ll use that to my benefit to gain her power too. Once she is out of the way and Summer is under my control, I’ll take Winter and then Oberon himself.”

Steve stared up at Wo Fat and shrank away at the look of pure madness in the man’s eyes. It was terrifying how unhinged Wo Fat was, to think he could hold all that power himself. Steve had to do something, but as another bolt of lightning stuck toward him and he only managed to move away from being hit, it occurred to him he didn’t have a lot of options.

Inside, his mantle squirmed and fought, the vines coming out from Steve’s skin, whipping about frantically. Even the power of the Winter Knight was at a loss. Steve couldn’t let that stop him. He got to his feet, facing Wo Fat.

“It doesn’t have to go like this,” he said in a last-ditch effort to have the man see sense.

Wo Fat smirked and Steve knew that this was it.

“I think I’m done playing with you now,” Wo Fat said. He threw the Spear. It moved incredibly fast and Steve had no chance at dodging it. The Spear hit his shoulder, its vines wrapping around him, fighting with his own tendrils, slapping them away as they pierced through Steve’s skin. Each of the Spear’s vines felt like fire and ice combined as they dug in, and Steve let out a scream of anguish as he fell to his knees.

From Wo Fat there was no crazed laughter, no jeers of triumph. Just a cold tight smile of satisfaction. He leaned down looking at Steve like he was only a bug. “I hope you know this isn’t personal,” he said.

That was the worst. It wasn’t personal. Wo Fat didn’t care one way or the other about Steve, about Danny, no one. It was just all for power. All this pain, suffering, it meant nothing to him. Just means to an end.

“It that so. Well, guess what? This is.”

Steve wasn’t sure what happened, but in one moment Chin and Kono were there. Chin held a cup in one hand and threw it at Wo Fat. Semi-translucent liquid splashed against the man’s face as the smell of citrus filled the room. Wo Fat reared back as the liquid hit his skin, clutching at his face in agony.

“This is pretty personal too,” Kono added, rounding her cousin. She raised a long metal bar and swung it hard like a bat, taking Wo Fat off his feet. “Eat iron, dick.”

“Steve!” Danny was suddenly at his side. He took Steve in his arms, holding him, careful of the Spear in his shoulder and the vines. “Steve, hold on. Imma…” His voice trailed off, fear making his eyes impossibly wide.

“Don’t,” Steve said weakly. The vines from Spear were too deep into his skin and if Danny tried to remove them, there was no telling what would happen.

“Danny? What’s happening?” Chin was down next to Danny now, distressed. “What do we do?”

Danny shook his head, wordless.

“Leave it,” Steve said. Even as he said this, he could feel his life and energy being drained out of him. His own tendrils had shrunk away, retreating to conserve their power. He didn’t know how long he would have before he became an empty husk. “Danny…” he started but Danny threw up a hand.

“Don’t’ you fucking dare,” he said. He looked over to where Kono stood over Wo Fat. She was still swinging the metal bar, beating him without mercy. “Chin, I think you might want to do something,” he said.

Chin glanced over his shoulder, his expression thoughtful. “I suppose I should.” He stood and rejoined her, taking her by the arm shaking his head at her continued efforts to beat Wo Fat into a pulp.

In Danny’s arms, Steve convulsed and trembled. Danny stroked his face looking resigned. “Hey, babe. I’m gonna do something and it’s going to hurt.”

Steve shook his head, unable to speak, but Danny ignored him as he slipped his tie from around his neck. Around him, aura grew, spilling out in the darkness like a beacon. The tie was gone, having resumed its true form of Danny’s coronet. He placed it on his head and he shone even brighter. Around them a hot wind kicked up, starting off as a soft breeze before picking up speed into a full-on gale.

“What’s happening?” Kono shouted over the winds.

“I don’t know, but think it has something do with Danny,” Chin replied. They stood by Wo Fat’s writhing form watching in awe as Danny laid Steve down carefully and took the Spear in both hands.

That act alone shifted the weapon making Steve cry out. Danny shushed him, closing his eyes. He twisted his grip on the thing and for a moment he held on. The Spear glowed crackling with lighting. The energy pierced through Steve's body, somehow reviving and weakening him at the same time. It was excruciating, leaving him limp and whimpering against the floor.

The lighting faded out, and one by one the Spear’s vines retracted back into their host. Danny’s face reddened with effort as beads of sweat popped out on his forehead. “Just stay with me,” he whispered. With one hard jerk, he pulled the spear out of Steve’s shoulder.

Steve let out one more scream, his body arching off the ground, before laying still. Everything hurt, and blood was leaking out from his wounds. Would he make it to a hospital? There was no way. He peered up at Danny, words stuck in his throat. There was so much he wanted to say, but they wouldn’t come.

Danny leaned over him, his aura blinding Steve for a moment. Their noses touched “Just stay with me,” he said again. “You’re not dying on me. I couldn’t save Aurora, but I can save you.” With a tilt of his head, he pressed his lips to Steve’s and kissed him.

Warmth poured through Steve white-hot and searing. It burned away his pain, leaving a new sensation in its wake. The surrounding winds picked up and somewhere in the distance, there was the sound of thunder. Steve somehow lifted one arm wrapping it around Danny, holding him close, opening his mouth to deepen the kiss.

The energy Danny poured into him, healed Steve‘s his wounds, soothing his body and mind. He needed this, needed Danny. His whole body burned, and he never wanted to let go.

Inside his mantle curled up, quiet and relaxed, basking in the heat. It bowed to the power of its Prince, content in knowing it and Steve would be okay.

The kiss ended, to Steve’s disappointment. He felt a hundred times better, though when he tried to sit up, he was still weak. Danny, however, looked awful.

He was pale, his skin holding a slightly blue hue. Dark circles and bags were under his eyes and he swayed a little where he sat. The glow was gone, his aura had faded away to nothingness. The tie was back, hanging off Danny’s head haphazardly. Steve reached out to touch it, and Danny pushed his hand away gently, before taking the tie and slipping it back around his neck.

The winds had died down, and there were no longer trees in the distance. Once more the room had returned to a normal-looking office with wood floors and white walls. Chin and Kono looked around, startled and unsure. Wo Fat still lay on the floor, shivering, not making a sound.

“Danny are you ─” Steve said.

“I’m fine. Just used a lot of my powers there.” Danny took a deep breath, and using the spear to steady himself, got to his feet. “And I’m not done.”

“What are you doing?”

“Don’t worry about it,” Danny called back, walking toward Chin and Kono. He motioned to Kono to hand over the iron rod. She looked uncertainly to Steve, who nodded his head. He wasn’t sure what Danny hand planned, but he didn’t think it would be wise to stop him at this point.

Leaning on the Spear, Danny gestured for Chin and Kono to move away. Wordlessly they did, joining Steve as he tried to get off the floor. Chin reached down and helped him up.

“Uh, Steve, should we do something here?”

“I don’t think so, Chin.”

The three stood and waited, wondering what Danny would do next.

For a long moment, Danny did nothing. He stood over Wo Fat, his face grim and uncaring at the man’s pain. “You brought this on yourself,” Danny said. He raised the iron bar up and brought it down hard on Wo Fat’s stomach once before tossing away. “You said this wasn’t personal. Well, you made it personal. You went after my boy and I don’t appreciate that. You went after me and that really pisses me off. You killed Aurora and caused endless suffering to the Summer Court. You made this personal, and now you have to pay.”

Danny rolled his neck and shoulders as he repositioned his stance. There was no glowing aura this time, but Steve could feel the power surge. It was coming from the Spear as it crackled and sparked in Danny’s hand.

Wo Fat moved his hands away from his face to look up at Danny. Steve sucked in a harsh breath in horror as he saw what happened to the man’s face. It was burned, the skin raw and weeping. “What was in that cup you threw at him?” he asked Chin.

“Lime juice,” Chin said. “Danny told me it’s like acid to Fae.”

Steve blinked but said nothing. There was still so much he needed to learn it would seem.

“Guys,” Kono said, calling Steve’s attention back to what was happening. The room charged with electricity as Danny lifted up the Spear and brought it down into Wo Fat’s chest. Wo Fat grunted in pain, his ruined face contorting. It made a horrifying visage as the melted flesh twisted up further against the bone, Wo Fat’s teeth exposed and bared.

“You think this will make things right,” he hissed. “That you’ll be safe after I’m gone?”

“Nope,” Danny said, pushing the Spear in deeper, “But you’re here in front of me right now so I’m just going to focus on you.” He twisted the Spear, forcing a scream from Wo Fat’s mouth. A crackle of lighting went off, hitting Wo Fat’s body. He convulsed and writhed on the ground.

“You know what your problem is?” Danny said, his voice far too calm for Steve’s liking. “You’re short-sighted. You wanted all this power, but you wouldn’t have the first clue how to use it. You wanna know how I know that?” He gave the Spear another twist. As Wo Fat screamed Steve battled with his emotions. On the one hand, good. He wanted to see this, watch Wo Fat suffer for what he did, but he didn’t want Danny to be the one to cause this pain.

“I know this because of how you handled the Spear. You just threw it and let it go. That will work, but if you really wanna cause someone a real problem, you hold on and guide it.” As Danny spoke, the vines were back, creeping out from the Spear’s handle, slithering like snakes down the shaft on to Wo Fat’s body.

“No, no,” he said smacking them away from himself the best he could, but they kept coming. They coiled around his body, wrapping him up like a mummy, leaving his head for last.

Danny leaned down, not letting go of the spear, “I’m the Prince of the Summer court and you know what we in Summer are fantastic at? Making things grow.”

The vines thicken and turned bright green. All over them, buds and leaves sprang up. The buds bloomed quickly, leaving beautiful red roses everywhere. The vines had continued their course, covering Wo Fat’s head, leaving only his eyes exposed. From under the vines, Steve could hear his muffled screams.

Danny didn’t flinch or change his expression, but Steve could see the toll from all this. Steve pulled away from Chin, who with his cousin had been watching all this silently, and shuffled over to Danny’s side.

“Danny…”

“Don’t worry about me, babe,” Even as he said this, one of his knees buckled, and Steve caught him before he hit the floor. It was a two-part effort as they both righted themselves, Danny never letting go of the Spear the whole time. Steve pulled Danny to him and held him, fearful the other would fall over again.

He looked down and said nothing as he watched the vines grow more and more flowers, tightening their hold on Wo Fat, constricting around him. They had closed over him completely, pulling themselves tighter. He could hear the crushing of bones and Wo Fat’s muffled screams, but he didn’t shy away.

He stood firmly there with Danny, next to his Prince and waited until the screams stopped and with one final crunch, blood dripped out from between the vine’s coils. Only then did Danny let go of the Spear, and in doing so collapsed against Steve sending them both to the floor.

Chin and Kono surrounded them both pulling them away from the still growing mound of vines and roses. Steve didn’t notice. His focus was on Danny completely.

Danny’s face was slack and deathly pale. He still had a pulse, but it was weak. Steve slapped at Danny’s face, calling his name but received no reply.

“Is he going to be okay?” Kono asked.

“I don’t know,” Steve said. “He needs to get back to Summer. I’ll have to call someone because I can’t go there, and I wouldn’t ask you guys to go.”

“I don’t know if I would want to,” Chin said, holding Steve against his body. “I think I’ve had my fill of anything Fae related for a while.”

“Same,” Kono replied.

Steve breathed a laugh, not feeling it. He looked back down at Danny’s body and laugh turned into a quiet sob. “Danny, can you hear me? Hey Danny. Wake up!” He smacked at Danny’s face more, this time getting a weak response. Steve’s heart leaped in his chest as his mantle unfurled and celebrated. “Danny! Stay with me. We will get you back to Summer and ─”

“No,” came Danny’s weak reply. “Do not.” He opened his eyes and peered up at Steve. “Just take me back to your place. I can rest there.”

“Danny, I don’t think─”

Danny pointed a shaking finger at Steve, “Are you questioning me, Knight,” he said. “I am your Prince. You will obey my orders and that is final.”

Steve grinned, a new warmth spreading through him, “Yes, Your Highness.”

“Wow, he’s scary and bossy,” Kono said. “I think I like it.”

“No comment,” Chin said, shaking his head but smiling.

Steve smiled down at Danny, his spirits up. “Will Your Highness require anything while he rests?”

“Cocoa puffs and good coffee,” Danny slurred.

“I think I can manage that,” Steve said.

Danny said nothing but gave a weak attempt at a smile before his eyes fluttered shut. Panic swelled up in Steve and he quickly checked for a pulse. It was still there and still weak. He needed to get Danny somewhere safe and quickly.

“Hey, boss,” Kono said, “How are we going to explain what happened here?”

Steve spotted his sword, laying forgotten where it had fallen and smiled. “Don’t worry. I know a neat trick, so I’ll take care of things here. You guys get Danny back to my house. I shouldn’t be long. Just make sure to keep him warm.”

“I think we can handle that,” Chin said. Making sure that Steve wouldn’t fall over, he stood and with Kono’s help carried Danny out of the room. Steve sat and watched them go, wincing as they stepped over Jenna’s fallen body.

He moved over to where she lay, her unseeing eyes peering up at him. “I’m sorry Jenna, but…” He couldn’t finish that sentence. It was too cruel. She had lost her life in all this. He could afford a little kindness, if not forgiveness. Gently, he closed her eyes and pulled her further into the room. Then he retrieved his sword willing it back into his badge before going back to the heap of vines.

It was all that remained of Wo Fat, and Steve felt nothing. The man deserved what he got for the pain he caused, but he couldn’t bring himself to feel triumphant or pity. Instead, he sighed, taking the spear shaft in one hand and pushing his will into it. Frost formed on the vines and they died. With one hard jerk, Steve pulled it free and held it in his hands.

There was a surge of power. It filled Steve with a sense he could be more than a mere Knight. He could take Winter, take Danny from Summer and rule Fairy himself. Under all that was a primal lust for blood and death. It was like nothing Steve felt before. Even his mantle wasn’t this bloodthirsty.  He dropped it instantly, shivering with revulsion. No wonder Lugh never used the thing.

He pulled off his TAC vest and his shirt, draping both over the Spear. He didn’t know if it would help, but he felt the less he touched the thing directly the better. Now it was just a matter of time for the bodies and the wine to dissolve into Fairy dust.

“Um, excuse me? What happened here? Who are you? Where’s professor Mercado?”

Steve looked up at the doorway to see a middle-aged woman with graying brown shoulder-length hair and horn-rimmed glasses. She stared back at him like a deer in headlights and Steve quickly held up his badge so the light glinted off it. It caught her attention immediately.

“Don’t worry, Ma’am. I’m with Five-0, the governor’s task force.”

~*~

The next few days nothing much happened. Steve returned the Spear, going out with the new guard to return it to the cave where it belonged. Other than that, he stayed home with Danny.

It was wonderfully domestic. The first day, they stayed in bed, eating when hungry, talking or reading when bored, just resting from the fight they had with Wo Fat. Slowly, they both regained their strength, though Danny complained the whole time that Steve kept his home way too cold.

After that, they just moved around each other as they had always lived together. Danny would cook, which Steve loved. Steve would fuss that Danny would leave wet towels on the floor after his shower, which Danny rolled his eyes at but seemed to enjoy. At night they would watch T.V., complaining that there was never anything good on.

Chin and Kono came to visit them to check in, which turned into an impromptu barbeque. It was nice, and Steve felt a measure of peace come over him. Not once did his mantle raise its head and complain they were being idle or even demanding his attention. It nestled in Steve’s chest, curled up, only coming out when Danny moved too far from their side

He made good on his promise though. They went to visit Danny’s daughter. Grace was a cheerful, polite child, and she instantly charmed Steve. Danny’s ex-wife, however, won no favors with him or his mantle and Steve had to fight it to stay down and not take her out.

Really, the whole thing was over too quickly as Steve woke up one morning to find Danny sitting fully dressed on the bed looking down at him.

“It’s still dark out, Danny. What are you doing?” Steve sat up, wiping the sleep from his eyes.

“Yeah, I don’t like it either, but I was just told that I need to go back.”

“Oh.” That was all Steve could manage. He knew it would come, eventually. The Spear was in its rightful place, but they still had to report to the Courts. They couldn’t avoid it forever, although Steve sorely wished that they could. “I guess I’ll see you around then?”

Danny looked thoughtful, sad but nodded. “Yeah. You’ll see me around. Maybe I’ll come back to Hawai’i. I’ll bring Gracie over and she can swim while we catch up, or something.”

Steve’s heart fluttered at the prospect. “Any time you want.”

Danny smiled. It was wide and brilliant, pulling Steve closer to Danny. He took Danny’s face in his hands and kissed him, long and slow, reluctant to let go. Even his mantle got in on it, its vines creeping out of Steve’s skin and wrapping them both up in a loose hold.

Unlike Steve when the kiss ended, they didn’t want to let go. It led to Danny raising his voice and harping on how Steve and his mantle were both Neanderthals. The final straw was when one vine wrapped itself around Danny’s ankle and twitched sullenly. Steve threatened to cut it off, grabbing his sword and coming on a few short seconds from carrying out his threat. It let go but not with making its displeasure known by giving Steve a hard slap on the arm before retreating under his skin.

After that, with one last kiss goodbye, Danny was gone, and Steve felt the world crash down on top of him.

~*~

“How long will you be gone?” Kono asked. She and Chin stood in Steve’s bedroom, watching him pack a rucksack.

Steve shrugged, blindly tossing in clothes and protein bars. “I don’t know. Maybe a few weeks.”

It was time for him to present the findings of his investigation to the Courts. That wouldn’t take long, but he knew that Mab would expect him to hang around in Winter for a few days and attend court. Since time in Fairy worked differently, he couldn’t say how long he would be away.

“Maybe it won’t be that bad,” Kono offered, trying to lighten the mood. Since Danny had left Steve had fallen into a funk, wavering back and forth between sadness and rage. He had returned to work only for Chin to insist that Steve take a few more days off, when after catching a drug dealer for questioning, Steve almost flew off the handle and threatened to peel his skin away from his body.

He was a mess, and it was all because he missed Danny. He no longer felt right. His body was too cold, his mantle rebelled, coming out whenever it wanted, and his temper was far too short for anyone’s comfort. Chin and Kono tried to work with him, comfort him, but even they knew it wasn’t enough. A Knight without his Prince was a lost cause.

“Yeah, maybe you’ll see Danny?” Chin said.

Steve perked up a little. That very thought kept crossing his mind giving him a little hope and happiness before his emotions would crash again.

“Yeah, but we’ll have to be careful. There are rules that have to be observed in court and with Danny being Summer and their Prince, we will have to be extra cautious about how we interact.”

“Bummer,” Kono said.

Steve snorted, grabbing up the rucksack and tossing it over his shoulder. “You have no idea.” He took a deep breath and reached out to his friends. “Wish me luck.”

“Good luck, brah,” Chin said, stepping up and hugging Steve. Kono piled in too as both mortals said their goodbyes. Steve held them tightly before letting go and heading out of the room and down the stairs. Then he opened a portal to Fairy and stepped through.

It took him right outside Mab’s castle. Snow crunched under his boots and a cold wind cut through his cargo pants and tee, grazing his skin. It was still welcoming. Winter would always be his second home as much as he didn’t want to be there. He adjusted his hold on his bag and made his trek up to the castle calling out his name and title as he walked through the empty gates.

The courtyard glittered with ice and snow, and nosy Fae stopped him to ask questions and tell him gossip. He didn’t linger with them long, using his reputation to brush them off, and continued to his chambers inside the castle proper.

His rooms were as he left them, and someone had turned down his bed for him as well as polished his armor. He regarded the silver plate mail, adorned with brass filigree and sighed. They expected him to wear it tomorrow when he presented himself to the Courts. He growled, not liking the prospect. He threw his rucksack down and fell on to the bed, not bothering to move, not even when some unseen force brought him dinner on crystal tableware. He wasn’t in the mood to eat or do anything. He wanted to see Danny and that would have to wait until the morning.

~*~

The clearing in the Old Forest was like Oberon himself. Grand, imposing, but not unwelcoming. A perfect blend of Autumn and Spring, balanced with red and gold leaves on the trees, and the ground covered in wildflowers. Normally it was empty and undisturbed, but today it was abuzz with activity. Both Courts of Summer and Winter mingled about, making small talk and being overly polite to one another. Steve watched it all with boredom.

He begged off morning breakfast with the Court, seeking Mab out directly and proposing to her that he go ahead of everyone else to ensure their safety. Mab gave him a shrewd look calling out his lies but allowed it. So, Steve stood near the erected dais that sat five Thrones in his armor and gray woolen cloak, his sword at his side, and watched the nobility of Fairy mingle.

It all felt odd to him, to be there but being on the outside of it all. After his entrance in the castle, the day before no one approached him though he could see where guests would look his way. Their expressions were mixed with fear and curiosity. Steve would stare back and people would look away quickly, but a lingering feeling of not belonging settled over Steve. He wanted to go home to O’hau but knew that he needed to see Danny one more time.

The sound of fanfare erupted through the clearing, drawing Steve’s attention. Everyone stopped what they were doing and turned toward the trees. There was a flurry of sprites that came out first, throwing handfuls of flowers and glittering snow creating a path. Then out stepped the Royal Family.

Oberon entered the clearing, his tall broad frame consuming the surrounding space. He dressed simply, russet robes and tan trousers, a bronze torc around his thick neck. Flowers and leaves covered his mighty antlers and dark beard. He looked around the clearing and nodded his approval.

He presented both his arms and out stepped Mab and Titania. Mab dressed in icy blue, snowflakes and frost covering her dress, her long white hair draping down her shoulders and waist. Titania was in soft rosy pink, flowers covering the hem of her skirts and sleeves. Her red curls braided loosely down her back.

The three of them were a stunning tableau, radiating their power, equal yet different. It impressed Steve but only in so far as he knew their strength and their rankings. He kept looking behind them waiting for what he truly wished to see.

As the King and his two Queens stepped forward toward the dais, Danny and Morgan stepped out from the trees. Danny looked stunning, dressed in regal finery made up of soft blue silks, his coronet sitting firmly on his head. Steve’s mouth went dry as he watched him move, longing to call out to him.

Everyone settled down as the Royal Family took their seats on their thrones. Oberon looked out over the crowds, both Winter and Summer, waiting for him to speak. “Thank you all for coming,” he said, his voice booming. “You are all here to bear witness to these proceedings.” He turned his head to look at Steve. “Good Sir Knight, please present yourself and your findings.”

Stepping forward, Steve moved before the dais, front and center. He got to one knee, his head bowed as he addressed each person before him. “Your Majesties, Gracious King Oberon, Glorious Queen Mab, Gentle Queen Titania, I have come to report on the task that was given to me: locating the Areadbhair and returning it to safety.”

He waited. There was a stillness in the air he couldn’t place. It was unsettling and disorienting. He felt exposed and his mantle shifted inside him.

“Please rise,” Oberon said. “And report on your task.”

Steve got back to his feet and squared his shoulders. “I report that with the help of the Summer Prince, I was successful. Not only was the Areadbhair located and returned, but we dealt with the persons responsible.”

There was a quiet murmuring in the crowd. Approval and surprise mixed in with an edge of resentment and fear. Steve scanned the faces before him. Oberon looked pleased as did Mab. Titania looked like she was fighting with her emotions. Her lips curled slightly as her eyes cut between him and Danny. Danny, in all his splendor, was doing his best to ignore her gaze, his eyes locked firmly on Steve. There was a hint of awe in his eyes that made Steve’s heart beat faster and his mantle preen.

“Yes, Prince Daniel was there with you,” Oberon acknowledged. “I admit, it startled me he was tasked to join you, but I see it was for the best.” He smiled benevolently, white teeth shining through his full beard. “I commend you both for your hard work. As a token of the Courts’ and my gratitude, you both shall receive a boon.”

There was more muttering, this time of curious excitement. What would the Knight and Prince ask for as their rewards?

Steve blinked taken aback. This seemed too easy. He looked to Danny, who was frowning, his lower lip sticking out. He must have thought the same thing.

“Forgive the interruption, my Lord, but I have one question,” Mab’s voice broke through like an arctic breeze, soft but icy cold. Steve’s eyes went to her, her steely blue eyes watching him.

“Of course, my dear,” Oberon said.

Mab soothed back her hair and leaned forward, “What happened to my messenger, Jenna. She never reported back and I am now being told that she is dead.”

There were some gasps, followed by more whispers in the crowds. This was more like it. Digging, gathering information, that would be used as a possible weapon at a later time.

Steve nodded toward Mab. “You were told correctly, Your Majesty. I regret to inform you that Jenna is dead.”

“By your hand?” Titania words came out harsh which did not match with her normal warm tones. The air turned hot and dry, making Steve breath catch in his throat.

“No!” he shot back, almost forgetting himself. He locked eyes with Danny once more.

Danny was pale, shaking his head, warning Steve. Even Steve’s mantle poked him, putting him back in his place.

“No,” he said again softer, lowering his eyes. “While I did not agree to have her in my space due to past events, I didn’t reject her outright being there nor did I hurt her. It was another.”

“Mortal or Fae?” Oberon asked, leaning forward, one arm propped on his knee.

“A half Fae, like me. And like me, he was a member of Winter’s Court. Or I should say, a former member.” He turned to Mab, meeting her eyes. “It was the same Fae that worked with Jenna in the attempt to assassinate me. They were working together again, but in the end, he betrayed her.”

A solemn hush fell over the clearing. Betrayal was something that Fae didn’t speak of. Not that it didn’t happen, but it was never spoken aloud.

“I see,” Said Mab, leaning back against her throne. “A pity. Was he dealt with as well?”

“Yes,” Steve said. “He was since he was also the one who took the Areadbhair.”

This time the gasps were not quiet nor were there whispers. Words flew freely in the crowd. A member of Winter took the Spear. Accusations sprung forth, people of Summer jeering and shaming Winter, while members of Winter shot back their defenses and denial.

The ones who remained silent in all this were Steve and the Royal Family. Mab coolly took the anger astride, while Titania’s expression was gleeful. Steve longed to wipe that look off her face, but once more Danny held his attention, shaking his head, his eyes pleading with Steve.

Finally, Oberon raised a hand, silencing everyone. He sat with his back straight, his expression grim. “Are you saying that this was an act of Winter?”

“No, your Majesty. He didn’t act on behalf of Winter but on his own selfish desires. He wanted power. He wanted mine. He wanted that of Princess Morgan and Prince Daniel. In the end, I think he wanted to take yours and the Queens’ as well.”

“That’s ridiculous!” Titania stood up sharply. “No one would dare.” She turned to her husband. “Are you going to listen to this? Of course, he would defend Winter. He’s their Knight. Mab wanted the Areadbhair. They all conspired to take it.”

Mab glared, her cool gaze turned icy cold. “Careful, sister. You’re being irrational, and someone could get hurt.”

Oberon waved at both women, his look telling everyone that a very fine line was about to be crossed and he wouldn’t have it. “Sir Knight, continue speaking. Leave nothing out or so help me.” Oberon’s voice boomed like thunder.

Steve dropped his gaze. “I will tell you everything I know and understand, Your Majesty, but please know some of it may be hard to hear.”

“Understood. Speak.”

Steve swallowed and lifted his eyes. He stood stock still as she spoke. “The Fae in question took the Spear, and he implied that he was given assistance, but not from anyone in Winter, but from Summer.” More gasps came forward. Oberon’s face paled and even Mab looked shocked.

Titania, however, looked enraged. Her green eyes glowed and locked on Steve like a viper ready to strike. Steve ignored her, looking at the King.

“He told me that Titania herself helped him. That she was grieving her child and wanted revenge. He promised her he would take out Prince Daniel for her in exchange for the Spear. He also confessed to me that Titania didn’t know the truth of Aurora’s death. That he killed her as part of his plan to take more power.”

What happened next could only be described as an eruption. The crowds all shouted at once, no one voice heard in the cacophony of noise. Titania screeched out, pointing a finger at Steve screaming “Liar!” before turning on Danny.

“He killed my child! He did it!” She lunged toward Danny and Steve sprang forward to stop her. He knew he wouldn’t make it on time, but it turned out he didn’t need to. A tree burst through the floor of the dais, blocking her path. Danny had fallen back, magic wafting off him as he panted.

Steve continued forward, leaping up on the dais at Danny’s side. “Are you okay?” he whispered.

Danny looked pale and shaken, but nodded, “Yeah. Thank god for ignored saplings, right?”

“You did that?” Steve asked, looking at the tree. It was long and thin birch, its white bark already thick and peeling.

Danny let out a mirthless laugh. “Yeah, but don’t ask me to do it again. I think I’m getting a headache.”

“Titania! I have had enough of this.” Oberon’s voice boomed loud, shaking the ground itself. Steve and Danny both peered around the tree to see that the King had moved to his feet, towering over Titania, who had fallen to the ground. She looked terrified and panicked, her eyes moving around wildly in their sockets.

“My child,” she wept, “He took my child.” Tears streamed down her face as she cried openly. Steve’s heart went out to the woman as she curled in a little ball. “My little girl…”

Oberon’s face softened, and he took her by one arm lifting her to her feet. “No, my dear. Our child.” He took Titania in his arms and embraced her tightly. “I miss her too, but you must stop this foolishness. Daniel had nothing to do with what happened to her.”

Titania didn’t speak but clung to her husband, sobbing.

Behind them Mab stood motionless, clutching her own daughter Morgan to her body. They both watched on, uncertain and sad. Soon they joined Oberon, hugging the crying Titania and comforting her.

Steve averted his gaze. This was too personal, too raw for him and he had no right to witness it even if it was being done out in front of him and the members of the Courts. He tried to pull Danny from the dais, but Danny moved away from him, rounding the tree and approached the group.

“Titania,” he said softly. The other broke loose of each other staring at him confused. He was their family in name only. They couldn’t fathom why he stood there now.

Danny shuffled his feet and bowed his head. “I’m sorry about Aurora. I tried to save her and if I could I would bring her back. I don’t know what it’s like to lose a child, but I have one, and if anything ever happened to her, I don’t know what I would do.”

Titania’s expression was unreadable, but no longer full of hate and malice. It just looked resigned. She sniffed and gave a nod, but said nothing, turning her face away, burying it into Oberon’s stomach.

The King held her, one hand stroking her hair as he gazed at Danny. “Thank you,” he said. Then he looked out among the crowds. “I feel enough has been said. Everyone is dismissed.”

The crowds muttered discontent they were being dismissed right when things were getting good but slowly filed out of the clearing returning to their own court, possibly to gossip about what just happened. Steve watched the people file out before moving to stand near the rest of the Royal Family.

“Your Majesty,” Steve started but Oberon waved him silent.

“Sir Steven, a lot has come to light here and much will need to be done, but for now you have performed your duties and thus you may return to Mortal Realm.”

That was outright dismissal. Whatever happened now, Steve had no business there. He would be fine with that, but he looked at Danny, his Prince and shook his head. “Yes, Your Majesty, but there is still the matter of my boon.”

Oberon and Mab stared at him like he had lost his mind. Danny raised a fist as he would hit Steve but lowered it, letting out a hopeless sigh.

“Your boon?” Oberon glared, his patience thin.

“You promised him one,” Mab said. She tilted her head to one side studying Steve. She was waiting to see what was so important he would demand it at such a time

“So I did,” Oberon agreed. “Make it quick.”

“I ask that Prince Daniel return with me to the Mortal Realm.”

“What?” Danny asked. “You can’t ask that. He can’t ask that, can he?”

“He can ask,” Oberon said. Titania pushed against her husband and sister, turning to face Steve and Danny.

“Yes. Take him.” She had calmed down but there was still something dangerous in her eyes. It would be a long time before she would be whole again, if ever.

Oberon eyed her tentatively. “I don’t know. He is a Prince of the Court. He can’t just be out unprotected.”

“He’ll be with me,” Steve said. “I’ll protect him. He needs a Knight and there isn’t one in Summer.”

Oberon scratched his beard thoughtfully. “No, there isn’t, and I feel that was no accident.” He cut his eye at Titania who looked away petulantly. “I don’t know though. Mab, this is your Knight. What do you say?’

Mab moved around her sister and her husband to stand face to face with Steve. Her cool steely gaze bore into him, making his mantle squirm. “Will this keep you from your duties to me and my Court?”

“No. My loyalties are with you, always.” Steve bowed, taking Mab’s hand to bring it to his lip. “I know my place, but I know that your need for me is limited. His is not.”

Mab considered this. “Very well. I will allow it. For now.” She stepped back, and Steve released her hand, standing straight to face Oberon.

“Then it is done. The Prince is in your charge for now. I decree that he will stay within the Mortal realm until a new Summer Knight is found and my wife asks for his to return to court.”

Which would be never if Steve read Titania’s expression correctly. She wanted nothing more to do with Danny or his presence. Steve gave a curt nod.

“Thank you, your Majesty. I will depart now, with your blessing.”

“Go,” Oberon said, taking Titania and Mab by the hand. He led them off, Morgan wrapped in her mother’s arm. That left Steve and Danny alone.

“You’re insane,” Danny breathed. “I am sorry, but I really don’t know what else to say.”

“As crazy as Titania?” Steve asked. He looked at Danny and smiled, happy that he got what he wanted.

“No, but close.” Danny sighed and looked out over the clearing. “Now what, huh?”

Steve wrapped a careful arm around Danny’s shoulders. “We gather our things and go home.”

~*~

The bathroom was a mess. Again. Steve stood in the doorway and huffed in exasperation. Towels were on the floor. Water was everywhere, and the cap was off the toothpaste. He closed his eyes and counted to ten. Inside his mantle churned and unfurled its tendrils. One broke free from under Steve’s skin and started picking up the wet soggy towels.

“No,” Steve said. “No. We’re not doing that because otherwise, he won’t learn.” The vine dropped the towel and somehow looked guilty. It slithered back under Steve’s skin in his arm and Steve did an about-face going down the hall, towards the stairs.

It had been a few weeks since what happened in Fairy. Steve brought Danny back to his home, and the idea was, at least according to Danny, was for him to find a job and a place of his own. Steve had other ideas.

The first thing he did was tell Danny he could work with him as a member of Five-0. Danny refused, citing that it wouldn’t be professional for them to work together since they were sleeping together. Steve filed the paperwork anyway and was pleased to present Danny with a shiny badge like his. That led to an argument and Steve noticed a thunderstorm.

Danny eventually relented, and Steve remarked how Danny could now enchant the badge to hide his coronet, as Steve had done with his sword. That way he could stop wearing the ties. Danny said he would stick to the ties, thank you very much. That just led to Steve stealing and destroying all of them, which lead to another fight and another storm.

Then there was the matter of finding a place to live. Steve insisted that he go apartment hunting with Danny, and as far as he was concerned, every place they looked at was a dump. Danny just wanted somewhere he could afford and would have enough room for him, his things and Grace when he could work out visitation with his ex-wife, (and didn’t she just love that idea when Danny approached her about it), but Steve’s reasoning was sound. Even in the Mortal realm, Danny was still the Summer Prince and he couldn’t just live anywhere. He needed something nice, clean, had a good view, and be easily defended in case of an attack.

He knew of such a place and Danny was already staying there since it was Steve’s home. This led to several arguments and more storms. Danny finally relented, and Steve prided himself on his negotiation skills.

It was perfect. Danny could stay with Steve and never leave his sight, so Danny would always be protected, and Steve got to bask in the warm glow of his Prince whenever he wanted.

Not that this arrangement didn’t come with some problems. Danny was messy, case in point: how he left the bathroom every morning. He was loud, always yelling from across the house about something or someone and he listened to far too much Bon Jovi for Steve’s liking.

Danny’s defenses against it all were simply Steve was a neat freak and a control freak, which Steve denied, that he wasn’t loud, that was just how he talked and that there was nothing wrong whatsoever with the musical stylings of Jon Bon Jovi. It all led to more arguments and more storms, which people around the island were commenting on.

It made Steve worry that this had all been a bad idea. That he had jumped the gun like he always did but this time he wasn’t going be able to use some Fae trick to make it work. Danny knew those tricks, and this would all fall apart.

It left him crestfallen and defeated until his mantle would pop into his head space and point out some things Steve was missing. That Danny could cook. Stars above Danny could cook. Steve loved everything that Danny put on the table, and he was certain that he had put on weight because of it. The thing was he couldn’t bring himself to care about the extra pounds. That’s how good Danny’s cooking was.

Then there were the quiet times, where they would watch T.V. or sit out on Steve’s lanai. They didn’t fight or worry at each other then. It was just gentle conversations and light ribbing. They made one another laugh and Danny’s smile was like Steve’s own personal sun.

Then there was the sex. Steve craved it, pulling Danny in his bed every chance he got. It wasn’t the sex alone. There were the moments after, when they were marked up and tired, curled around each other, Danny’s skin too hot and Steve’s too cold and everything balanced out. Steve always found peace there and always renewed to himself his vows to stand by Danny no matter what.

Those things plus more made Steve always decide that all the irksome parts were worth it. Because without them, he didn’t get Danny’s ridiculous bedhead or the cute little thing he did with his nose when annoyed. Still, Danny needed to learn to clean up the bathroom when he was done. At least put the cap back on the toothpaste.

Steve marched through the house finding Danny in the front yard, talking to someone. There was no one there that Steve could see, and he slowed down as he approached.

“Look I get it. He doesn’t water you as he should, and he uses cheap mulch. I’ve talked to him about this, I swear I have! And I think I might be getting through. So please for my sake just try. Can you do that? For me?”

“Danny?”

Danny spun around, wide-eyed. His surprise morphed into annoyance like it always did when he was getting ready to go a rant. “What have I said about sneaking up on people? It’s rude, Steven.”

“I wasn’t sneaking, this is my house, and what are you doing out here? Who are you talking to?”

Danny looked away and hand going to the back of his neck. “The violets,” he mumbled.

Steve made a face in confusion and looked down. There were rows of violets in the old flower bed in front of the house. They looked sad and wilted in the ground.

“They don’t wanna grow. So, I was trying to encourage them. They, however, are being difficult because they don’t like you, which I explained that was tough all over because like you said, this is your house, but I like them and I hoped that they could try for me.”

“You can talk to the flowers?” Steve knew that Danny could make things grow as part of his powers, but he didn’t know it went this far.

“Some of them. Some just don’t listen, but most things around here seem to be receptive to me. Like that old palm in the backyard. I can’t get it to shut up.”

“Hm, I imagine that must be awful,” Steve said. “I wouldn’t know anything about that, someone that just talks and talks.”

Danny gave him a cross look. “Shut up. You love it when I talk, otherwise, you would have let me have my own place.”

Steve shrugged. He wouldn’t say it out loud, but Danny wasn’t wrong. He stepped in closer and peered down at the violets. “Hey. Do what he says, or I’ll give you permafrost.”

The violets shuddered, and Danny looked horrified. “What is the matter with you? Now I’m not going be able to do anything with them. I swear to God if they die I will wrap you in vines and light you on fire.”

“Sure, you will,” Steve said rolling his eyes.

“Test me." A dark look came over Danny's face.

Steve remembered so of the feats he had witnessed his Prince do. He blinked taking a step back. “Ok. Alright.” He looked back at the flowers again. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean it.”

The violets didn’t move but Danny was satisfied. “Thank you.”

Steve made a face and sulked. His mantle, however, was impressed. A vine came out and played with Danny’s hair before slipping away once more.

Danny huffed, slicking his hair back into place. “Could you please tell them not to do that?”

“Sure,” Steve said, sulking. “I’ll add that to the list, along with don’t pick up after Danny in the bathroom.”

Danny winced and looked apologetic. “Yeah, I was going to get to that.”

“Okay, Danny.”

“I was.”

“I’m sure.”

Danny sucked on his cheek and sighed. “Steve, do you ever think this is a bad idea?”

This startled Steve. Was Danny having second thoughts too? Steve panicked and so did his mantle. Its vines came forward, waving in the air and Steve had to yell at them to stop it. They listened and retreated back under his skin. Save for one vine that wrapped itself around Danny’s wrist and wouldn’t let go, no matter what.

“Danny, I…” Steve tugged on the vine, “I wonder that too, but we just have some things to work around. No relationship is perfect and,” he tried to give the vine another hard tug, but he ended up just pulling Danny into him.They crashed to the ground, with Danny on top and the vines took that moment to wind them together.

“I don’t think we get a say in if this is a good idea or not anymore,” Steve said.

“I think you’re right.”

One of the vines was back in Danny’s hair playing with it while the others slid around them merrily. Steve was glad that there was no else around. Who would be afraid of the Winter Knight if they could see this nonsense?

Danny worked an arm free and tapped on Steve’s head. “You know you think loudly?”

Steve looked at him ready to go on a rant of his own but stopped. Danny’s aura was out, surrounding them both in a soft golden light and he felt so warm against Steve’s body.

Danny smiled softly, and Steve’s heart melted in his chest. He couldn’t remember the last time he felt this free.

“You wanna know what I think?” he asked, pressing his nose to Danny’s.

“What’s that?”

“I think we’re going to get along just fine.”

~*~Fin~*~

**Author's Note:**

> Weee, so this is the first fic I'm written in a while. I hope you all enjoyed it.  
> Doing research for this was interesting and I ended up pulling ideas from a lot of places. Originally, I was inspired by Jim Butcher and how he portrayed the Fae in his Dresden Files books, in particular, Summer Knight. I just loved the concept of the Fairy Courts and the Knights in particular. I ended up borrowing that and ideas from other IPs such as Dungeons & Dragons and Supernatural to write this.  
> I had fun with this and I hope you had fun reading it. Feel free to let me know what you thought. Comments are always appreciated and thanks for reading!.


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